Following Jaxson Dart’s recent concussion and the New York Giants’ blowout loss to the New England Patriots, the major topic of discussion of the rookie quarterback’s Week 13 postgame presser was the idea of him once again taking too many unnecessary hits.
However, Dart didn’t seem to agree with that assessment.
“No,” the Giants’ QB1 responded bluntly after being asked if there was anything he’d do differently on the bone-crushing hit he took from linebacker Christian Elliss while scrambling down the sideline.
“Look, I understand the question,” Dart continued, after a pause. “But this is football. I’m going to get hit if I’m in the pocket or [if I’m] outside the pocket. I feel like I’ve played this way my whole entire life. It shouldn’t be any shocker to anyone if you’ve followed along with my career. We’re not playing soccer out here, like, you’re going to get hit, things happen, it’s just part of the game.”
Jaxson Dart Confirms Belief That He Must Remain Aggressive to Be the Quarterback the Giants Drafted Him to Be
GettyNew York Giants quarterback Jaxson Dart gets harassed in the pocket against the New England Patriots.
The catch-22 with Dart is that his play style predicates upon scrambling and being aggressive. He doesn’t necessarily have the truly elite arm or the ability to throw the ball 50 yards on a dime, but he is a gamer who can improvise on the move and beat you with his legs.
If you take that part of his game away, he may not be the franchise QB that the Giants drafted him to be. But if you don’t take it away, or at least teach Dart to be more careful in certain situations, he may not stay on the field.
After Week 13, Dart confirmed his belief that he must remain aggressive in order to be the very best quarterback that he can be.
“Absolutely,” the rookie told reporters when asked if he feels limiting that aggressiveness would take him away from his game.
“Like I said, I’ve played like this my whole life,” Dart explained. “You can turn on my high school tape and turn on my college tape; it’s not a shocker to anybody. This is just how I’ve played. I felt like if you watched the game, I did slide. I did avoid a lot of hits, [but] you’re going to get hit. It’s football.”
Frustration seemed to be mounting for Dart during this press conference, as the first-round prospect fielded question after question on this subject. And all after an embarrassing defeat on national television.
“Not good enough because we lost,” the Giants QB stated, regarding his personal performance, to start the presser. His focus appeared to be on that simple fact, while reporters were more concerned about his health.
Giants’ Jaxson Dart Says Body Feels Good After Concussion News
The Giants sat Dart for two weeks following his Week 10 concussion, and the rest appears to have helped the youngster’s body recover.
“My body feels good,” Dart voiced after Week 13. “I got knocked out of the game against Chicago on a fluke play. Like, you watch the hit, I lose control of the ball, and I don’t brace myself [for the hit] because I’m trying to re-catch the ball. It’s not because of [the strength of] the hit, it’s just because I lost the ball.”
“Just like any other league, when you take new steps, there are bigger, faster players,” he acknowledged. “But my body feels good, so I’m going to play aggressive. I feel like if I just turn into a complete pocket passer, that’s just not how I want to play the game. I feel like there’s an advantage to me using my legs.”
As for Dart’s message to teammates who want him to protect himself better, he said: “I thought I did a good job tonight.” And: “I just tell them thanks for looking after me.”
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