Giants interim OC shares familiar warning for rookie QB Jaxson Dart

The 2-11 New York Giants are already eliminated from playoff contention, meaning the future of rookie quarterback Jaxson Dart will be the biggest storyline hovering over the organization through Week 18. 

While speaking with reporters on Thursday, Giants interim offensive coordinator Tim Kelly repeated a familiar message regarding Dart's health after the signal-caller took a crunching hit while trying to pick up an extra yard or two on a carry during New York's Week 13 loss to the New England Patriots. 

Giants know Jaxson Dart needs to protect himself

"I talked to him about it," Kelly said about that Dart play, per the Giants' website. "He's got to get out of bounds. He's got to get everything he can and make sure he's clearly out of bounds so he's not exposing himself. That was a clean hit. Those guys were playing hard. We were playing hard."

Dart was checked for a concussion on four occasions during games from the preseason up until he was knocked out of the Giants' Week 10 loss to the Chicago Bears on Nov. 9. That injury sidelined him for two contests, but he nevertheless said after the Patriots game that he is "going to play aggressive." Dart later insisted that star NFL quarterbacks "take hits too." 

"We talked about the awareness a little bit ago of having that ability to go and get everything you can and then make sure that you're protecting yourself and protecting your team and getting out of bounds," Kelly continued during his comments about Dart. "That was the biggest take that we took from that."

How Jaxson Dart has responded to Giants' warnings

A Giants team that will have a new head coach and that could have a new general manager may also possess the first overall pick of the 2026 NFL Draft. Theoretically, a new regime could use that asset to draft Dart's replacement. Thus, he needs to show the Giants that he can play well and stay in the lineup through Week 18. 

"He does," Kelly responded when asked if Dart "fully understands" that his most important ability is availability. "And again, that's part of his game that makes him unique and makes him the type of player that he is. And you see it throughout the league with other young quarterbacks that are coming through with a similar play style is learning when to say when. When is the journey over? And that's clear as day when the journey was over. The guy's got you dead to rights. You're on the sideline already. Just duck out of bounds six inches earlier, and we're not having this conversation right now."

Dart will next face a live defense when the Giants host the 3-10 Washington Commanders this coming Sunday. As of Friday morning, DraftKings Sportsbook had Big Blue as a 2.5-point favorite for that game.