Giants Rookie Reveals First Impression of Jaxson Dart

The NFL Draft, to some extent, is a crapshoot. And if the New York Giants are fortunate enough, they might find a handful of starters.

Picked third overall, edge rusher Abdul Carter shouldn’t have any problem cracking the starting lineup and making an impact. It’s only a matter of time before first-round quarterback Jaxson Dart gets his chance to play. On Day 2, the Giants picked Toledo defensive tackle Darius Alexander to fill the vacancy next to Dexter Lawrence.

They might find some value on Day 3, too, namely with fourth-round running back Cam Skattebo.

He isn’t expected to start for Week 1 festivities, but there’s real upside to be unpacked, meaning he’s going to get lots of time with Jaxson Dart, both in and out of the starting lineup.

At rookie camp, the Giants running back revealed his first impressions of Dart.

“Yeah, I mean he's incredibly smart,” Skattebo said. “You guys will talk to him soon, but I mean, I've talked to him the last 24 hours and the kid is incredibly smart. He's one of the smartest I've been around, and he did a great job today with the seven-on-seven play calls, snap counts and all of that, and making sure everybody was in line. I can't wait to see what he does and what he's capable of.”

For now, Skattebo projects to be the complement to running back Tyrone Tracy Jr., using his contact balance and motor in short-yardage and red-zone situations.

Dart, meanwhile, won’t see much time in Year 1. He’s stuck behind Russell Wilson and Jameis Winston, veteran mentors whose presence allows Dart to have the redshirt season New York feels is necessary for his development. He could change those plans with enough progress in practice, but his rookie counterpart in the backfield is bound to get a head start on NFL snaps.

There’s only so much progress Dart can make this summer. According to Skattebo, he’s gotten off to quite the start.

“I mean coaches say things and if you answer it fast and right, that's hard to do, especially with the nerves and everything that rack up as a rookie,” Skattebo continued. “The head coach asks you a question and you know the answer like that, you're into your books and you're very smart and just talking to him about football and certain routes and play calls and just hearing him hear a call one time and being able to call it multiple times back to back, it's just something that he does well and I can't wait to continue to see what he does.”

The Giants are a long way from wielding the full potential of this rookie class, but in making several good-process selections, they’ve set themselves up for success. For the first time since 2019, optimism in East Rutherford feels warranted.