How Giants' Russell Wilson is dealing with calls for Jaxson Dart to start

It's hardly a secret that pockets of New York Giants fans and numerous NFL analysts believe head coach Brian Daboll is making a mistake by starting veteran quarterback Russell Wilson over rookie Jaxson Dart for this coming Sunday's game at the 0-1 Dallas Cowboys.

While speaking with reporters on Wednesday, Wilson addressed the Dart-sized elephant in the room. 

How Russell Wilson is handling calls for Jaxson Dart to start

"I think you embrace challenge," Wilson explained, per Paul Schwartz of the New York Post. "I don’t think I run from challenges. I don’t think I run from anything. I know how confident I am in myself, [how] confident I am in the guys that we have. My confidence never blinks. I’ve been through everything. I’ve been through all the biggest highs there could be, been through a few lows, but at the same time, I also know my confidence never wavers."

Some noteworthy members of the NFL community said in late August that Dart deserved to enter the season as the Giants' QB1 after he played well during the preseason. That was before Wilson completed 17-of-37 passes for just 168 yards in New York's 21-6 Week 1 loss to the Washington Commanders.  

"I didn’t play good enough," Wilson said about his performance at Washington. "You always want to play better. Whenever you don’t win, you always feel like there’s more to do." 

It's thought the Giants aren't in a rush to have Dart face live defenses in meaningful games while having to play behind an offensive line that routinely betrayed Wilson against Washington. Additionally, Daboll and Giants general manager Joe Schoen reportedly want Dart to hit "specific benchmarks" before the 22-year-old gets his first regular-season start.

Russell Wilson is ready for a fight

"We understand that it's going to be a battle every week," Wilson added about serving as a starting quarterback in the NFL, according to the Giants' website. "It's a 17-round fight, and we've got to go win round two. That's what's important right now. When you're boxing and you're fighting and you're playing, you can't think about round 10 or round 15. You've got to think about round two, so I think that's what's important right now for us."

If Wilson goes down for the count in round two, the Giants could turn to Dart for their home opener against the Kansas City Chiefs on Sept. 21.