NEW ORLEANS — Jaxson Dart walked around the Giants’ locker room late Sunday afternoon, trying to share his message with as many teammates as he could.
Dart felt like he needed to say this, needed to let everyone know where he believes the blame falls for Sunday’s pathetic 26-14 loss at the Saints.
“This one is on me — and I’m going to get better,” Dart told his teammates, as he recalled to reporters a few minutes later.
Give Dart credit for shouldering misery. That’s noteworthy. This kid continues to do and say all the “right” things in public and behind the scenes.
But he knows that, ultimately, he needs to deliver results, even as a rookie — or else coach Brian Daboll will get canned.
So now, Dart is approaching a critical tipping point early in his run as the Giants’ starting quarterback. After shocking the Chargers in his debut last week and then stumbling in New Orleans, Dart gets a short-turnaround Thursday night home game against the Eagles, followed by trips to Denver and Philadelphia.
It’s a brutal stretch for the 1-4 Giants and a massive test for Dart’s resilience, coming off Sunday’s dud. And it could very well define his rookie year.
Will he save the Giants from spiraling? Or will Sunday’s problems snowball into another nightmare start, like 2-8 in 2023 and 2-13 in 2024?
The Eagles and Broncos showdowns ahead are why Sunday’s winnable game at the winless Saints was such an important opportunity for this team and its new quarterback. But they both blew it.
Afterward, Dart did not mince words — especially about his offense wilting after scoring touchdowns on its first two drives (something the Giants hadn’t done since 2020). Following that, they went punt, punt, fumble, fumble (by Dart), fumble returned for a touchdown, interception, interception and turnover on downs.
“Yeah, those suck,” Dart said of the turnovers. “We kind of gave the game away by those. We’ve got to cut that s--- out. I think that starts with me, just being a leader. I’ve got to be a better example. As a quarterback, I put those on myself.
“I’ve never cared about my age. Right now, I’m the youngest quarterback in the league. But I could give two craps about that. It’s about winning.
“I expect myself to play better in these games — and to win them.”
So yeah, Dart accepting blame is nice. But as he understands, now comes the much harder part — fixing these problems with a daunting three-game stretch ahead.
On his non-contact fumble, the ball “just fell out of my hand.” He said that has never happened to him before, and the solution is simple: “Tuck the ball.”
While Dart’s two fourth-quarter picks (with the Saints up 26-14) stand out on the stat sheet, two missed deep-ball opportunities from the first half might haunt him more.
On the Giants’ third drive, Darius Slayton — their top receiver, with Malik Nabers lost for the year — dropped a long pass. On the next possession, Dart under threw a wide-open Slayton with a flea flicker.
It would’ve resulted in a touchdown and a 21-13 lead. Instead, the Giants didn’t score at all after their second drive of the game, as the 0-4 Saints strung together 23 unanswered points to erase a 14-3 deficit.
“Wish I could’ve put it a little farther out there,” Dart said of the flea flicker.
Dart, who turned 22 in May, is indeed the NFL’s youngest quarterback. He is two starts into his career. Hiccups like Sunday’s awful fumble are inevitable.
But don’t try telling Dart that. He was in no mood after Sunday’s game to do anything except hammer himself for his Nabers-less offense’s failings against the Saints — even though others, like Slayton and Cam Skattebo, also struggled, with fumbles of their own.
“Obviously, I’m young, and that can’t be an excuse,” he said. “I’ve got to continue to get better. Quarterbacks are measured by wins and losses. So I take that to heart. I felt like I was the one who should’ve been putting our team in a better situation.
“I’m definitely not into moral victories. It’s a loss. I don’t really care what happened [on the positive side] during the game. I felt like the whole game, we moved the ball just fine. We just had turnovers. I’m just going to work harder. I’ve got to keep leading.
“I’m the leader of the offense. So I think any time those [turnovers] happen, it falls back on the leaders. I take that responsibility. We’re going to clean that stuff up.”
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