The New York Giants‘ plan appears to be to open the season with Russell Wilson as the starting quarterback. But, the clock might already be ticking towards first-round rookie Jaxson Dart inevitably taking the field.
As training camp approaches, Dart, chosen No. 25 overall in April’s NFL Draft, broke his silence on how he’s preparing for this summer and his goals for what he hopes to prove to the Giants’ coaching staff, during an appearance on the Talkin’ Ball with Pat Leonard Podcast.
“I think first of all, I’m going to prepare as the starter, no matter what my role is,” Dart told Leonard. “Because, you really never know when your chance is going to come. My mindset is, whenever that comes, I’m going to be ready for it. I’m not going to shy away from the moment, and I’m going to take advantage of it.”
Whenever Dart takes over the Giants’ offense, there is going to be tremendous pressure for him to succeed, both in terms of delivering victories on the field but also to potentially save head coach Brian Daboll and general manager Joe Schoen’s jobs, after New York traded up to select him in the back-half of the first round of this year’s draft.
After appearing in 45 collegiate games at Ole Miss, Dart says that regardless of his role, helping the Giants stack victories is all he cares about and is focusing on as his rookie season approaches.
“The number one thing that I care about is winning,” Dart explained. “I don’t care, how much success I may be having, if the team isn’t winning, it’s not fun. It isn’t fun for me, it’s not fun for anyone else. My mindset is to prepare as the starter and whatever my role is, I’m going to take it head-on and do the best I can to support everyone on the team, and compete on the highest-level, I care about winning.”
Giants’ Mike Kafka Reveals What Stands Out About Jaxson Dart
Adam Hunger | GettyNew York Giants coaches have been impressed by some of Jaxson Dart’s best traits this spring.
The Giants have built a unique quarterback room, with Wilson, Jameis Winston, and Dart, with the apparent mission being winning enough games with Wilson to remain in the mix for the playoffs to keep the pressure off having to play Dart before he’s ready to take the field.
However, after a strong spring from the 6-foot-2 and 223-pound Dart, Giants offensive coordinator Mike Kafka says that the rookie quarterback thrives under pressure, which is one of the things that stood out the most to New York’s brass about their prized rookie.
“You watch the explosive plays, you watch how he operates in the two-minute drills and under pressure, under duress; you see some of the off-schedule, off-platform plays he has,” assistant head coach/offensive coordinator Kafka told reporters last month.
“Those are things that stood out to me. His ability to kind of play within the pocket, play outside the pocket, quarterback run game– things like that.”
Whenever Dart gets on the field, his ability to make throws on the run and extend plays with his legs, could prove to be an asset given the Giants’ porous offensive line and his off-platform throws could turn big losses into big plays downfield to the likes of playmaking wide receiver Malik Nabers.
It remains to be seen just how patient Daboll, Kafka and the Giants plan to be with Dart, but turning in an impressive training camp this summer after a strong spring might be the kind of thing that accelerates getting him onto the field for meaningful snaps.
Lane Kiffin Offers Strong Jaxson Dart Praise
GettyNew York Giants rookie Jaxson Dart earns high praise from Ole Miss head coach Lane Kiffin.
Few people know or understand Dart’s upside more clearly than his college head coach, Mississippi’s Lane Kiffin.
After all, Dart a 31-14 collegiate record, with a 2-1 mark in Bowl games during his time in Oxford while flashing the traits that catapulted him up draft boards this spring.
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