John Harbaugh provides details on Jaxson Dart's recovery timeline 

First-year New York Giants head coach John Harbaugh stunned members of the NFL community when he suggested on multiple occasions this past Wednesday that starting quarterback Jaxson Dart could potentially return from the serious knee injury Dart suffered on Sept. 21 in time for the playoffs. 

On Friday morning, Giants reporter Dan Duggan of The Athletic elaborated on Dart's recovery timeline. 

What is the "primary" injury to Jaxson Dart? 

Duggan revealed that Dart was scheduled to undergo knee surgery Friday at the Hospital for Special Surgery in Manhattan. 

"The surgery will be a full repair of his meniscus," Duggan explained. "He also has damage to his MCL and PCL, so those will be addressed if necessary, but the meniscus is the primary issue." 

Previously, Jordan Raanan of ESPN shared that Dart suffered damage to his meniscus and MCL when he took a hit on the opening drive of the Giants' 28-6 loss at the Los Angeles Rams this past Monday night. The good news for the Giants and Dart is that the signal-caller's ACL is thought to be intact. 

That said, it was reported on Wednesday morning that there was some hope Dart could potentially avoid a stint on injured reserve due to this setback. Thus, the fear exists that doctors could discover during surgery that Dart's knee is more damaged than originally thought. 

When could Jaxson Dart realistically return?

"The timeline for recovery is expected to be four-to-six months," Duggan added. 

Such a timeline suggests that Dart could return to the active roster if the Giants participate in a postseason game this coming January. Of course, such a scenario would likely involve either backup Jameis Winston or a quarterback currently not on the team's roster becoming a revelation and leading New York to at least eight or nine more victories. 

"I wouldn’t take that as a likely scenario," Duggan wrote about Dart possibly playing for the Giants in January or February 2027. "I’d say the takeaway is that the low end of the timeline is four months."

As Dart begins his recovery, Winston will start in rainy and windy conditions when the 1-1 Giants host the 0-2 Tennessee Titans this coming Sunday.