Jaxson Dart has undeniably been the best rookie quarterback in the NFL this season. But unfortunately, he is also proving to be one of the most reckless. While the Giants star’s intensity and fire are intangibles that fans adore, the problem is simple: every scramble won’t have a clean outcome. And this past weekend in Chicago was the perfect example of that.
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Dart suffered a concussion in the second half of the Giants’ 24-20 loss to the Bears, collapsing to the ground after taking a hard hit while trying to extend a play. His head slammed against the turf, he got up slowly, and moments later, he was walking into the blue tent… again.
This was his fourth concussion evaluation this year, including the preseason. Since becoming the starter in Week 4, Dart has been contacted the second-most of any quarterback, absorbing nearly 13 hits per game. On top of that, the Giants have been calling multiple designed QB runs each week, only adding to the beating. Even on Sunday, before his concussion, Dart was running for tough yards.
Dart finished the game with 242 passing yards, 66 rushing yards, and became the first rookie quarterback in NFL history to score a rushing touchdown in five straight games.
But for all the production, the durability questions have now become impossible to ignore. And leading this conversation is former MVP Matt Ryan. While speaking on The Inner Circle Podcast, he didn’t hold back.
“You’ve got to be available to play when you’re a franchise quarterback,” he said, before adding that consistency is what separates guys like Matthew Stafford from risk-takers like Dart. Ryan praised the rookie QB’s competitiveness and physicality, but made it very clear that this approach has to change.
“As a player, you can’t put yourself in harm’s way if you can avoid it. There’s a time and a place. And the time and place is on critical third or fourth downs in the fourth quarter — not in the first, second, or third quarter in the regular season,” he said.
Ryan then delivered the line that has now defined the entire discussion:
“There are just too many visits to the blue tent. Too many of those are self-inflicted.”
For Ryan, the lesson is simple. Jaxson Dart is fun to watch, but he must learn to protect himself. “We’ve got to find ways to stay on the field and stay healthy,” the veteran QB stressed.
Future first-ballot Hall of Famer Aaron Donald also echoed that sentiment, speaking as a veteran who has delivered more punishing hits than almost anyone in this era. “He’s been taking a beating for sure… I was watching that game last week and I’m like, ‘God, just slide down!’” Donald said.
Just like Ryan, Donald reiterated that he is all in for the toughness that Jaxson Dart brings to the field, but he warned that the quarterback is “too important of a piece” to take so much punishment each week.
“He can get away with it now… a little young, yeah, but long term that’s not going to work. It’s too physical,” Donald explained.
That said, even Jaxson Dart himself admitted earlier this week that balancing toughness with smart play is something he’s still learning. “It’s really hard for me… I just want to compete. Ultimately, I just want to score,” the Ole Miss product said.
And perhaps that’s what makes this entire situation tricky. Dart’s aggressiveness is what makes him special, but it’s also what’s putting him in jeopardy.
For now, all the Giants can do is hope that Dart’s latest concussion is a wake-up call. Because when two respected veterans like Matt Ryan and Aaron Donald are urging the kid to slide, it’s clear that something has to change. And fast.
Jaxson Dart, like his teammate Cam Skattebo, is too talented and entertaining to risk his career with such recklessness.
