Jaxson Dart endured a tough first season in the NFL with the New York Giants last season. Taking the reins from veteran Russell Wilson wasn’t easy, but the young signal-caller showed plenty of potential. Entering Year 2, however, there are concerns about his play style, and his latest comments didn’t sit well with many experts.
Jaxson Dart Taking a Big Risk With ‘Physical’ Play Style
Dart showed a lot of grit in 2025 with his physical style of play; the rookie wasn’t afraid to put his body on the line to make plays, recording an impact score of 76.3 on PFSN QB Impact Metric. While it earned him respect among fans, there are concerns about his longevity, as quarterbacks aren’t generally immune to hard hits.
The second-year pro poured fuel on the fire of people’s worries with his recent remarks about how he’s approaching next season. He was asked about his outlook ahead of the 2026 campaign and had some interesting thoughts.
“I’m excited for the pieces we’ve brought in,” he said. “They’re going to help us a ton. And we’re just going to be a physical, violent team. That goes on the offensive side of the ball, defensive side of the ball, and special teams. So the boys and I can’t wait to get out there.”
The panel on ESPN’s “Get Up” zeroed in on Dart’s expectation to play more “physical” football in 2026. Super Bowl-winning offensive lineman Damien Woody had an issue with the Giants quarterback’s comments.
“Usually you don’t have your quarterbacks using those type of words,” he said. “As a lineman, I typically like that, but after the year that Jaxson Dart had last year, where he kind of left himself out there quite a bit of time, you just hope for his sake, ‘Just stay available.’ Don’t put your body out there. You don’t need to be violent as a player out there. You just need to be a ball distributor and help your team win.”
Dart got rocked a few times last season, most notably against the New England Patriots in Week 13. On a broken play, the quarterback scrambled along the sideline before getting hammered by linebacker Christian Elliss. The hit sparked discussions about the rookie potentially playing too recklessly, which could cost him a lot of time in the league.
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After the Giants spent a first-round pick to acquire him in the 2025 draft, the franchise wants the quarterback to at least play into his 30s. Dart played under head coach Brian Daboll last year, which is a big difference from John Harbaugh now.
Daboll is known for maximizing his quarterbacks’ mobility to make plays, and it’ll be interesting to see how Harbaugh uses Dart going forward.
