NFL Analyst Believes Jaxson Dart Could Be Giants Week 1 Starter

From the moment he arrived at the team facilities in East Rutherford, NJ, last week for rookie minicamp, New York Giants quarterback Jaxson Dart has been the talk of the town regarding the franchise's long-term outlook.

Dart has only performed in a handful of practice sessions with the Giants' newest players before organized team activities have been set to begin, but there have already been a few glimmers of the excitement that seems to be surrounding the young man who hopes to one day assume the reins of the offense for years to come.

Head coach Brian Daboll certainly loved when Joe Schoen moved up from No. 34 to the back end of the first round to grab Dart, and that emotion has been evident by his interactions with the player, which have been caught on camera by the Giants' in-house media team.

Yet even Daboll has recognized that the Ole Miss product has some things to work on before he can truly excel in the coach's offensive system, or any NFL one, for that matter.

The Giants' plan has been for Dart to have a redshirt year behind the veterans in the quarterbacks room in Russell Wilson and Jameis Winston, learning and picking up on the makings of a starting quarterback.

While many following the Giants are expecting this to be a year of patience for Dart as the team looks to steer the ship back in somewhat of a position direction in 2025, Chris Simms of NBC Sports believes the timetable for the rookie's first appearance in blue might not take as long as one would think.

Speaking in an appearance on the Up and Adams show with Kay Adams, Simms boldly stated that he wouldn't be surprised if Dart was thrust into the spotlight from the first week of the season.

Could Jaxson Dart be the Giants Week 1 starter? Chris Simms believes it is a strong possibility 👀@heykayadams | @CSimmsQB | @Giants pic.twitter.com/vesQ8BSOUM
— Up & Adams (@UpAndAdamsShow) May 12, 2025

"I would not be shocked if it started off right away," Simms said. "I'm not expecting the Giants to be a super team here. I'm not picking them to go to the playoffs. The amount of money they're paying Russell Wilson does not guarantee him the starting quarterback job.

"If Jaxson Dart is phenomenal through training camp, he has a good OTAs and preseason while Russell Wilson is just okay and doesn't look sharp, then I don't think they'll be scared to put Jaxson Dart in here. That is why they really liked him coming into the draft."

Simms added that a more realistic expectation of Dart possibly entering the fold could come within the first five to six weeks of the Giants' upcoming schedule, which is shaping up to be the toughest in the NFL this season.

The Giants are set to start the year with two consecutive road trips to Washington and Dallas before finally returning home to MetLife Stadium to greet the reigning AFC champion Kansas City Chiefs and then the Los Angeles Chargers for Weeks 3 and 4. All of these teams had significantly better offenses than the Giants in 2024 and have upgraded their rosters.

If things get off to another rocky start, the Giants won’t have much room for error and could be forced to roll the dice with their novice arm to salvage the current leadership in the organization. Schoen and Daboll are still on the hot seat entering the season, and perhaps their only shot of sticking around in a bad season depends on a good early showing from Dart.

More than the rest of their rookies, Dart's potential promise could be the defining piece that tells whether the duo had a successful draft class for a second consecutive year. Still, Wilson wasn’t going to sign in New York, with the understanding that he would be a backup to a rookie teammate at that stage of his career.

Quarterback Russell Wilson | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

Wilson, 36, was believed to have wanted to join the Giants for what could be his fleeting chance to remain a starting option in this league, especially after his career had taken a downward spiral in two stints with the Denver Broncos and Pittsburgh Steelers.

He finished in the top 15 amongst the positions with the latter last season, but only saw dismal results with a quick exit from the first round of the playoffs after a 10-win partnership.

Nor were the Giants seemingly looking to hedge their immediate future on a rookie prospect in the months before they knew that Dart was in the realm of possibility on the first draft night. They still likely want to see if Wilson’s experience and play-action passing abilities can restore order to the offense and create a more talented group for when his successor takes over in 2026.

With talent on both sides of the ball, the goal was to start as being veteran-oriented to close the gap and then pave the way for the future franchise stars to continue a tradition of success that’s been missing from the Giants for far too long. They’ve been stuck in the same cycle of a lack of talent on the roster.

So, the Giants owe it to Wilson and the veteran players they’ve assembled to give it a fair shot at the start of the regular season and see if the intentions match the results. Again, if things go south quickly, it’s fair to wonder if Daboll uses his influence to once again get the offense to the place he’s always envisioned it.

The team spent six mostly failed years with Daniel Jones, and Daboll's frustrations with his shortcomings were frequently visible on his face. He now has a guy who clearly excites him and who can run a very similar pro system to the one he had at Ole Miss, which can test the defense in different ways.

May 10, 2025; East Rutherford, NJ, USA; New York Giants quarterback Jaxson Dart (6) throws a pass during rookie minicamp at Quest Diagnostics Training Center. | John Jones-Imagn Images

The leash will be extended just enough, but eventually, all roads will lead to Dart as his newest prodigy and the potential second success story after Josh Allen in Buffalo. Dart is already displaying many of the same traits as Allen, and it seems to be changing the vibe around the coaching staff in just the offseason alone.

As Simms points out, the more infectious that spirit of excitement becomes, the more interesting the Giants' quarterback room battle could become as a very important summer unfolds.

“When you have the head coach and the play caller in your corner, and you’re his guy, he’s going to make you succeed and continue to go in the right direction. So I wouldn’t be shocked Week 1, but if you bet somewhere around Week 5 or 6, it could be the time I would expect [a potential change].”

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