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Insider thinks Russell Wilson 'may not make it' to early part of Giants season as starter
New York Giants quarterback Russell Wilson. John Jones-Imagn Images

Insider thinks Russell Wilson 'may not make it' to early part of Giants season as starter

There is currently no sign that New York Giants head coach Brian Daboll is having second thoughts about naming veteran Russell Wilson the club's starting quarterback over backup Jameis Winston and 2025 first-round draft pick Jaxson Dart. 

For a piece published on Monday, Tom Rock of Newsday indicated Wilson will essentially find himself fighting to hold onto the QB1 gig when the Giants open the regular season with a matchup at the division-rival Washington Commanders on Sept. 7. 

"If the Giants come out of (training) camp believing Dart is ready to play, their tolerance for Wilson will be short," Rock wrote. "Even Eli Manning only got a two-week leash the last time the Giants were itching to play a first-round pick at the position (Daniel Jones in 2019), so if things go very south very quickly this time, Wilson may not make it to the home opener in Week 3."

The Giants seemingly want Dart to spend at least a significant portion of his rookie season learning about life in the NFL as a backup. That said, history shows he could alter such plans by producing impressive on-field performances from the start of training camp through the team's final preseason game. 

Additionally, there's no guarantee Wilson will stay healthy or play well over New York's first two games -- at the Commanders on Sept. 7 and at the Dallas Cowboys on Sept. 14. While with the Pittsburgh Steelers last season, Wilson spent the campaign's first six weeks recovering from a lingering calf injury that first bothered him during the summer. He later lost his final five starts with Pittsburgh from Week 15 through the wild-card round of the playoffs. 

According to Pro Football Reference, Wilson ended the 2024 regular season ranked 24th in the league among qualified players with a 51.3 adjusted QBR and 28th with a 43.6% passing success rate. 

"...If Dart can show his readiness over the next month and a half, then the Giants will have the freedom of going into this season knowing they can turn to him at the first genuine opportunity...and get moving on a future that already seems to be outshining the present," Rock added.

As of Tuesday morning, FanDuel Sportsbook had Wilson as a massive -1400 betting favorite to get the nod over Dart (+1060 odds) for the Washington game. It sounds like such forecasts mean little regarding who will start the Giants' Week 3 home "Sunday Night Football" contest versus the Kansas City Chiefs on Sept. 21. 

Zac Wassink

Zac Wassink is a longtime sports news writer and PFWA member who began his career in 2006 and has had his work featured on Yardbarker, MSN, Yahoo Sports and Bleacher Report. He is also a football and futbol aficionado who is probably yelling about Tottenham Hotspur at the moment and who chanted for Matt Harvey to start the ninth inning of Game 5 of the 2015 World Series at Citi Field. You can find him on X at @ZacWassink

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