Russell Wilson is chasing something the Commanders already have

With the addition of quarterbacks Russell Wilson and Jaxson Dart, the New York Giants are hoping to make the NFC East Division look a bit different this season. With the Washington Commanders showing up as the darlings of the division and the league last year, the Giants are hoping it is their turn in 2025.

To get there, they've enlisted the help of Wilson, whose career is in a vastly different place than his new rival, Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels.

The contrast between the two really puts a stamp on how quickly a career can go from the top to at or near the bottom, and why Washington needs to capitalize on Daniels' growing ability as much as possible. Because while one is talking about being in the spotlight again, the other is firmly in it and relatively unbothered by its presence.

"The opportunity here is so great," Wilson said on the 7PM in Brooklyn with Carmelo Anthony podcast, via NFL.com. "I don't mind the lights. I don't mind that part of it. I think the other part of it for me, most importantly of it all that, is I've been here before. When you walk into a stadium, into a locker room and you know, like my locker is the same locker I had when I won the Super Bowl. So, for me, when I see that, when I walk into the stadium I'm like, I've been here before. Not just been here but, like, we did this before."

Trying to recapture something can be tricky, especially when Wilson is trying to do it with a franchise that has a whole other goal in mind. For the Giants, they're looking for their franchise quarterback. Like the Commanders have in Daniels, New York is hoping they have one on its roster, and it isn't Wilson.

The quarterback the Giants really hope is the franchise great, is Jaxson Dart, 2025 first round pick. Wilson is the placeholder until they need to turn to the rookie, or he is just so ready they can't deny him any longer.

One teammate Wilson is looking to lean on to hold Dart's ascent off a bit longer is second-year receiver, and one of Daniels' best friends, Malik Nabers.

"Dude's a superstar," Wilson said. "I was watching the film trying to make decisions, trying to get a clear understanding of who the players are, this and that. Obviously, you see the highlights and everything else, but when you watch every single catch and every single rep and every play, you get to see the kind of player he is. He's dynamic. He touches the football, he gone."

Speaking of gone, Wilson's contract with the Giants is only for one year, and if the franchise has it their way, he won't be getting another.

We don't say that to be mean or rude, it just is what it is. Wilson sounds confident, but he's chasing something that most likely will stay behind him. New York wants him to possibly mentor the future of their franchise, but they don't expect him to be it or maybe even around long enough to see it have the same success Wilson once enjoyed with the Seattle Seahawks.

Washington, on the other hand, is in the early days of what it hopes will be the Daniels era. Like Wilson's with the Seahawks, the aim is championships, but not one, plural.