Exactly one year ago today, the New York Giants swung a franchise-altering trade with the Houston Texans to move back into the first round to draft Jaxson Dart, and after the Chicago Bears (you read that correctly) just took Stanford tight end Sam Roush 69th overall, the full details of the trade are now complete.
Last year, the Giants sent their 2025 second (34th) and third (99th) picks, along with a 2026 third, to Houston for the 25th overall pick. Big Blue came away with its next franchise quarterback, while the Texans only actually used one of the picks received -- the 34th pick -- to upgrade their receiver room with Iowa State's Jayden Higgins.
The 99th pick took its talents to Vegas, while the 2026 third-rounder made its way to Western New York, before it was sent to Chicago to move back into the second round. Absolute madness. With Chi-Town taking Roush, this officially closes the book on the unexpectedly chaotic Dart trade return.
Giants receive:
- Jaxson Dart
Players drafted with Giants’ original picks:
- Jayden Higgins (2025, No. 34 -- Texans)
- Charles Grant (2025, No. 99 -- Raiders)
- Sam Roush (2026, No. 69 -- Bears via Bills/Texans chaos)
We now know the full trade results between the Giants and Texans and Raiders and Bills... and Bears.
Giants’ Jaxson Dart trade just wrapped up in the most chaotic way possible
Houston just couldn’t make this easy, could they? After taking Higgins early in the second round, the Texans circled back later on and packaged picks to move up again, using No. 58 and No. 99 (the Giants’ original pick) to jump to 48 and take Minnesota offensive tackle Aireontae Ersery.
That kicked off the domino effect. The Raiders ended up with No. 99 and used it on William & Mary offensive tackle Charles Grant, officially closing the book on the Giants’ 2025 picks.
Then came the 2026 third-rounder -- the one that somehow went on a road trip. Houston flipped it to Buffalo as part of a move to climb up the board and take Georgia Tech guard Keylan Rutledge. The Bills weren’t done either, turning around and sending that same pick to Chicago in another trade-up.
Which is how we got here. Da Bears eventually land at No. 69, take Stanford tight end Sam Roush, and just like that, the final piece of the Jaxson Dart trade puzzle falls into place.
Who else has a headache?
Regardless of how much the Giants gave up to grab Dart, it was worth it. Add a pick or two to it, too. Still worth it. The 22-year-old was widely considered more developmental prospect than finished product coming out of college, but flashed abilities years ahead of where people thought.
He ended his rookie season with a 4-8 record, throwing for 2,272 yards, 15 touchdowns, and five interceptions on 63.7% completion percentage. He added 487 yards and nine scores on the ground. Someone get L.L. Bean on the phone to check on their fleeces.
The Giants couldn't be bigger winners if they tried. Made out like bandits.
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