NFL insider: Some Giants staff wanted Jameis Winston starting over Russell Wilson

Former Seattle Seahawks franchise quarterback Russell Wilson was just good enough last season with the Pittsburgh Steelers to earn himself another deal. Wilson has joined the New York Giants on a one-year contract worth up to $10.5 million. That's a pretty big fall from the five-year, bajillion-dollar deal he got from the Denver Broncos just three years ago, and its peaks to how much he's declined.

In fact, there are apparently some voices within the Giants organization who wanted to see former No. 1 overall draft pick Jameis Winston win the starting QB job over Wilson, according to Paul Schwartz at The New York Post.

Wilson may be a shadow of the quarterback he was in his peak years with the Seahawks, but it's a good thing that Wilson's supporters won out. Winston may be undeniably fun to watch - his game remains erratic though and as always he's just as likely to throw an ugly interception as a highlight-reel touchdown. Last season in Cleveland he finished with a 13/12 TD-INT ratio, which isn't far off from his career mark of 154/111.

Meanwhile, Wilson had a much better 16/5 mark in this department and finished wth a passer rating 15 points higher than Winston's in 2024. Even a greatly-diminished Wilson represents the Giants' best chance to win this coming season.

That doesn't necessarily mean Wilson is their best choice to start at quarterback, though. No matter how well he performs Russ is not going to become New York's new long-term QB1. Of the quarterbacks currently on their roster, only Jaxson Dart has a chance to earn that honor.

For now, Dart's game might still be too raw for him to be starting in NFL games, but if that changes at any point this season the Giants would be better off seeing what he can do than trying to squeeze out ultimately meaningless wins with Wilson. This is not going to be a playoff team - so developing their young second-round pick as much as possible represents the best path forward for the Giants at QB.