Despite the preseason buzz stirred by 2025 NFL Draft first-round pick Jaxson Dart, the New York Giants will go with Russell Wilson as their starting quarterback to start the 2025 NFL season. That decision may not last too far into the season if the Giants get off to a horrid start.
Like with what the New England Patriots did last season in sitting Drake Maye in favor of the veteran Jacoby Brissett to start the season, the Giants are taking a similar approach in assuring they don’t toss their rookie into the fire.
In looking at the Giants first four games of the NFL Schedule, the team will have to go into Washington to face the Commanders, then head to Dallas to take on the Cowboys before hosting both the Kansas City Chiefs and Los Angeles Chargers. There is a possibility the Giants get vintage Wilson, and they take a game or two, but given Wilson’s recent history with the Broncos and Steelers, he will be benched at some point, but when?
If Brian Daboll wasn’t entering the season on the hot seat there may be more patience, but if the Giants struggle offensively, Daboll may shorten the leash on Wilson and pull the trigger on Dart. So far, the Ole Miss product has shown off his arm talent through training camp and the preseason. He has also showcased the ability to uplift the playmakers around him. Could that rookie energy earn him an early season start early in the season?
Jaxson Dart gets the call in Week 5
Barring an injury to Wilson, the Giants make the move to see what they have in their young quarterback in a week 5 matchup against the New Orleans Saints. Even if the veteran QB is okay leading the offense, a player like Malik Nabers could call for a change if he’s not getting the ball as much as he feels he should. That, along with the team not winning despite great defensive effort could force Daboll into making the change if they feel Dart is ready.
As the top rookie quarterback in the preseason, Dart completed 68.1 percent of his passes for 372 yards, three touchdowns and no interceptions. It was just the preseason, but Dart gave Giants fans hope for the future and a vision that the future could be now.
With the 2026 NFL Draft expected to be filled with quarterback talent, the Giants really need to know what they have in Dart. They may not have nothing to lose if the season gets off to a winless start. That would lead Daboll looking to cool off that hot seat by going with the exciting arm.
On the flip side, if Wilson leads the Giants to a 2-2 record to start the season and the team is competitive in the losses, the best-case scenario then turns to preparing Dart for the 2026 NFL season like the Chiefs did when Patrick Mahomes was sitting behind Alex Smith.