In hindsight, the New York Giants' decision to trade back into the first round to select Ole Miss quarterback Jaxson Dart with the 25th pick was the right one. At the time, some skeptics soured on the move. They called Dart more of a project than franchise savior, but not five months later, and it's crickets from that crowd. All he's done since arriving in East Rutherford is blow expectations away.
He lit up camp, turned heads in preseason, and now the hype train isn’t slowing down anytime soon. At this point, it's impossible not to be excited about the 22-year-old's future in Giants blue. That is, unless you live in an alternate universe where retrospect roams free and re-drafts displace future franchise signal-callers.
Is it too early for a 2025 re-draft? It's unclear, but no real NFL snaps have been played, so likely: Yes. That didn't stop Bleacher Report's Brad Gagnon from tossing up his own. At the center of his exercise is Dart being taken significantly higher than he was on actual draft night — something that speaks volumes about just how electric the rookie quarterback has been and how bright his future will be.
Raiders completely crush Giants' future in 2025 re-draft
Gagnon has the G-Men sticking with Abdul Carter at No. 3, so at least the pass-rushing nightmare is still in blue for the long haul. However, with the Las Vegas Raiders on the clock, he sees the Black and Silver spurning Boise State superstar running back Ashton Jeanty to grab their new QB of the future in Dart. His analysis below:
"Dart has already looked so good this offseason for the Giants that he might soon threaten Russell Wilson's starting job. Jeanty has a big future, but this has become a no-brainer."
First off, calling this move a "no-brainer" is nuts. Jeanty was widely regarded as the best offensive talent in the draft. And it took one preseason for the rookie signal-caller to obliterate that narrative.
What a massive compliment. Dart's a stud. The former Rebel moving up 19 spots, into the top 10, in a re-draft, all but confirms that Joe Schoen and Brian Daboll made the right move trading up. Gagnon clearly sees what Giants fans, and everyone else, already see: the rookie is electric.
With this move, Jeanty’s slide gets ugly. He drops from the No. 6 spot all the way to No. 22, landing with the Chargers — a wild fall for a 21-year-old Heisman runner-up who just posted 2,601 rushing yards and 29 touchdowns last year alone. As for the G-Men, Gagnon has them selecting Louisville's QB Tyler Shough with the 25th pick.
This would be a brutal reality... if it were reality. Fortunately, we don't live in make-believe world, and Dart is the future QB of New York. With Russell Wilson and Jameis Winston guiding his development alongside Daboll, the sky is the limit with this guy. For the first time since Eli Manning, it finally feels like this team has a clear direction and no alternate re-draft can take that away.
To the Raiders, it's "Maybe next time." Perhaps in some alternate universe, this works out for them, but certainly not in this one. Good luck finding your QB of the future — the Giants already have theirs.