If the 2025 offseason has taught us anything it's that the New York Giants were not satisfied with their quarterback play. They used the offseason to completely flip their quarterback room upside down—and they absolutely had to.
After years of trying to survive the Daniel Jones experience—and the carousel that followed—Big Blue pivoted hard. Russell Wilson. Jameis Winston. Jaxson Dart. A complete makeover. No more hoping. No more praying. General Manager Joe Schoen and Head Coach Brian Daboll knew they had to act and act fast.
The plan made a ton of sense. Bring in a veteran bridge (or two), buy time for a rookie to develop, and hope it buys the front office and coaching staff some breathing room. Trading back into Round 1 to grab Dart—even with Shedeur Sanders still sitting there—was the final bold stroke. This was no panic pick. This was Schoen and Daboll picking the Giants' next QB of the future, fully understanding that their own futures might ride on it.
But here’s the problem: John Mara isn’t exactly preaching patience. Before the offseason, he made it crystal clear that 2025 is no rebuilding year. “It better not take too long because I’ve just about run out of patience,” Mara said. That leash Daboll and Schoen are supposedly getting? It’s fraying by the minute. And that’s why the timing of Dart’s first start could end up defining everything.
The clock is already ticking on Brian Daboll’s future
Daboll wasted no time declaring Russell Wilson the starter. “Russell Wilson is the starting quarterback,” he said after Round 1. No sugarcoating it. No vague coach-speak about competition. Wilson’s the guy... until he’s not.
Because here’s the reality ESPN's Dan Graziano laid out: “Whether Dart plays Week 1, Week 9 or not at all in 2025, it stands to reason the Giants will want to give Daboll and Schoen a long enough runway with the kid to see if he can be their quarterback of the future – even if that runway extends into 2026.”
That’s the hope. But, as Graz also reminded us: “History tells us drafting a first-round quarterback is absolutely no guarantee of job security.”
This isn’t just about Dart’s development timeline. It’s about how hot the seat under Daboll gets. If Wilson and Winston keep the team competitive—great. Dart can sit, learn, and launch properly in 2026. And if that happens? Daboll’s safe. Schoen’s safe. They bought themselves the time they needed.
But if the season spirals, and Wilson looks cooked by Week 6? That’s when panic sets in. That’s when the locker room starts side-eyeing the coaching staff. That’s when John Mara’s itchy trigger finger gets even itchier. And that’s when you can almost guarantee Daboll turns to Dart, not because he’s ready, but because he has to.
Make no mistake: if Dart starts earlier than expected, it will be a desperate act of survival—not a carefully laid plan. It’ll mean the Giants’ season is slipping, and Daboll is tossing his last hope onto the field to save his job. And fair or not, that’s a position that almost never ends well for head coaches.
Because the simple truth is: when Dart finally makes his first NFL start, it won’t just reflect where he is... it’ll reflect where Daboll and the G-Men stand.
If Dart starts in 2025, it’ll almost certainly mean the season has unraveled and Daboll is clinging to his job, praying a spark from the rookie can save him. If Dart doesn’t start until 2026, it’ll mean Daboll and the Giants did enough with Russell Wilson and Jameis Winston to survive the year—presumably when Dart’s true debut will come under stable conditions, with Daboll in as HC.
Either way, Dart’s first start will say far more about the coach than it does about the quarterback.
As Graziano put it perfectly: “The Daboll/Dart connection might very well be what resurrects the Giants franchise. The coach and the QB both appear to have the talent to make it work. But if 2025 goes badly, there’s plenty of recent history that tells us hope for the future isn’t enough to save a coach’s job.”
That’s the tightrope Daboll is walking now. Play it safe, develop Dart slowly, and pray Wilson has one more good season in him. Or roll the dice when the season teeters, start the rookie early, and hope Dart is good enough to mask all the cracks.
The second Jaxson Dart takes his first real NFL start, we’ll know exactly where the Giants stand. And exactly how close Brian Daboll is to the edge.