Game film may show why Giants aren't yet ready to start Jaxson Dart

Pockets of excited New York Giants fans and some local media members are calling for head coach Brian Daboll to name rookie Jaxson Dart the club's Week 1 starting quarterback after Dart completed a combined 26-of-35 pass attempts for 291 yards and two touchdowns over the Giants' first two preseason games. 

For a piece posted on Wednesday morning, Ted Nguyen of The Athletic suggested an in-depth look at the game film shows why Daboll and Co. are sticking with veteran Russell Wilson as the Giants' QB1 for their regular-season opener at the Washington Commanders on Sept. 7. 

"Daboll and offensive coordinator Mike Kafka are rightfully doing a great job of keeping things simple for Dart with screens and isolation routes in which he’ll throw to the single receiver in three-by-one formations or choice routes to the slot," Nguyen wrote. "He has eight completions on screens (bubble and true screens) for 73 yards. To Dart’s credit, he’s executing the concepts that are called for him at a high level. Even on simple screens, he’s doing a great job of changing his arm angles to get the ball to his target, but those plays don’t take a lot of thinking."

Dart rushed for a touchdown and completed 14-of-16 passes for 137 yards with a score in the Giants' 31-12 preseason win over the New York Jets on Saturday. Shortly after that game wrapped up, some assumed the Giants could make backup Jameis Winston available to other teams. 

However, Giants assistant general manager Brandon Brown insisted on Tuesday that "Jameis is a New York Giant." That comment could lead one to believe that Winston will be the Giants' QB2 on the first Sunday of September.

Before Dart became the "best rookie quarterback of the preseason," it was made clear that Daboll and general manager Joe Schoen wanted the 22-year-old to spend at least a portion of the upcoming campaign as an unused backup. Those plans theoretically could change if Wilson struggles against Washington and in the Giants' Week 2 game at the Dallas Cowboys. 

That said, it sounds like Winston and not Dart could get the nod for the Giants' home opener against the Kansas City Chiefs on Sept. 21 if Daboll chooses to sit Wilson after just two starts.