Later this week, the New York Giants will kick off the 2025 season with a matchup against the Washington Commanders. This will mark the official debut for a handful of new faces, but rookie Jaxson Dart isn't going to be one of them.
The Giants traded up for Dart on draft night, but are taking a slow approach with him. They signed Russell Wilson in free agency to serve as a stopgap under center, giving the Ole Miss standout extra time to adjust to the level of play in the NFL.
While the Giants are sticking to their slow approach with Dart, he has shown he is more than capable of holding his own. The rookie put together a strong showing in the preseason, adding more fuel to the discourse that he should take the reins now.
On Tuesday, the Giants released their first depth chart of the year. As expected, Wilson landed the top spot at QB. However, Dart will begin the year as his backup over Jameis Winston.
Before a new season gets underway, the staff at The Athletic compiled a series of bold predictions for teams across the league. While discussing the Giants, they stated that Dart will take over as New York's starting QB by Week 5.
"Giants brass has told everyone who will listen since the draft that Russell Wilson is the unquestioned starting quarterback and the plan is for first-round pick Jaxson Dart to develop behind the scenes," wrote Dan Duggan. "It sounds awfully familiar to 2019 when the plan was for Eli Manning to start with Daniel Jones on the bench ... and then Jones took over after an 0-2 start. Manning was a franchise icon with far more equity than Wilson, who is on his fourth team in five years. If the Giants stumble against a killer early schedule, they won't wait long to replace Wilson with Dart"
While the Giants have not come out and said it, many believe that Dart will take the field at some point this season. It is only a matter of when Brian Daboll decides to make the drastic change.
Armed with a core filled with exciting young pieces, the Giants are focused on building out for the future. With contention out of the question in the short term, they should be focused on getting Dart as many reps as possible to see if he can be the franchise's long-term answer at QB.
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