The Giants are exploring potential quarterback additions following a knee injury to Jaxson Dart that is expected to sideline the second-year quarterback for the rest of the regular season.
But after giving Jameis Winston a two-year, $13MM extension for this exact purpose – backing up a young injury-prone quarterback – the starting job is his to lose. The 32-year-old did struggle after Dart went down in Week 2 – his 40.7% completion rate and 4.1 yards per attempt were the lowest single-game marks in his career (min. 10 passing attempts) – but he was also playing in an offensive system designed around Dart and not him. Giants offensive coordinator Matt Nagy is likely adapting his scheme to Winston’s under-center, pocket-passer skillset (and limited mobility); with a full week of practice, the 12-year veteran should have better command of the offense in Week 3.
At the same time, head coach John Harbaugh wants to win. In press conferences this week, he left the door open to Dart playing in the postseason – the absolute earliest end of his return timeline following his surgery on Friday. But even if Dart attacks his rehab to get back on the field as soon as possible, the Giants (and therefore their quarterback) would have to play well enough to earn a spot in the playoffs to make that a reality this season.
New York’s upcoming opponents – Tennessee, Arizona, and Washington – should offer Winston an opportunity to solidify his grip on the starting job with a few wins. But the Giants may still make a move at quarterback, potentially adding one with starting experience as soon as Monday, per Tom Pelissero of The Ringer.
“General manager Joe Schoen has been working the phones on all available QB options—including potential trades—since the Giants learned of the severity of Jaxson Dart’s knee injury,” Pelissero wrote on Saturday, though Jonathan Jones of The Athletic contends that Schoen has not made “any legitimate trade calls yet.”
“For now, it’s Winston until it’s not,” Jones adds. He noted that the Giants could re-sign Brandon Allen to the practice squad after he spent the offseason in New York, giving him plenty of familarity with Nagy’s offense to serve as third-string depth right away. The rest of the free-agent ranks offer precious little in the way of starting-caliber quarterbacks. Talk of signing Jimmy Garoppolo persists, but he “would need a real contract of sorts” to join the 53-man roster rather than the practice squad, per ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler.
If the Giants did look to the trade market, they would have to strike a careful balance between finding their best upgrade for this season without creating any quarterback controversy down the road. Fowler and Pelissero both mention Mac Jones and J.J. McCarthy (among other young backups) as potential targets, but success from a short-term Dart replacement could turn into pressure to at least get a chance at the long-term starting job, especially given the 2025 first-round pick’s injury history.
