Giants make peculiar decision about Jaxson Dart, Jameis Winston ahead of Commanders game

Russell Wilson will serve as the New York Giants' starting quarterback for their Week 1 game at the rival Washington Commanders this coming Sunday. 

However, the Giants' handling of backup signal-callers Jaxson Dart and Jameis Winston generated headlines ahead of the weekend. 

Did Giants want Jaxson Dart, Jameis Winston to avoid speaking with media?

On Thursday, both Darryl Slater of NJ Advance Media for NJ.com and Pat Leonard of the New York Daily News shared that the Giants declined to make either Dart or Winston available to media members throughout the midweek. Per Leonard, this is a violation of the NFL's media policy that dictates "players must be available to the media following every game and regularly in person during the practice week as required under league rules and their contracts."

Leonard asked the Giants if Wilson had anything to do with Dart and Winston not completing media obligations either before or after midweek practices. The Giants said that "we have not established a new policy" and that "we do not schedule weekly availability with the backup quarterback." 

Why would Giants hide Jaxson Dart, Jameis Winston from reporters?

Even before the Giants' unofficial depth chart showed that Dart will be the club's QB2 for the Washington clash, some analysts said that playing the rookie over Wilson in Week 1 would give Big Blue "the best chance to win." 

Dart was arguably the most impressive first-year quarterback of the preseason. Across his appearances in New York's three exhibition matchups, he completed 32-of-47 passes for 372 yards with three touchdowns and no interceptions. He also rushed for 52 yards and an additional score on six carries.

Fair or not, the perception exists that the Giants don't want either Dart or Winston to publicly comment on when Wilson may be benched. Some have speculated that the Giants could turn to Dart for their Week 5 game at the New Orleans Saints on Oct. 5. Others believe Dart could get the nod for New York's home-opener against the Kansas City Chiefs in Week 3 on Sept. 21.

It remains to be seen when Dart and/or Winston will next speak with reporters inside the locker room or from a podium. That said, logic suggests Wilson will eventually be asked why his backups weren't made available to talk with media members as the Giants prepared for their Week 1 contest. 

As of Friday morning, ESPN Bet had the Giants as 6.5-point underdogs against the Commanders.