With New York Giants training camp beginning in late July, BigBlueInteractive.com (BBI) breaks down each of the team’s positional groups until the players report at Quest Diagnostics Training Center.
FIND A COMPLETE LIST OF ALL BREAKDOWNS HERE
POSITIONAL BREAKDOWN: Quarterbacks
2024 YEAR IN REVIEW: As much as the New York Giants were nationally mocked for their handling of the Saquon Barkley situation, the more serious failure was their complete misevaluation of Daniel Jones combined with the weak insurance policy provided by the signing of Drew Lock. Indeed, both Joe Schoen and Brian Daboll were lucky to survive these mistakes.
Coming off 2023 neck and knee injuries, Daniel Jones did not miss any time in training camp. But his on-the-field performance was terrible. He went 2-8 before being benched, throwing just eight touchdown passes in 10 starts. The only good news was the team finally cut their losses after six years and released him before Thanksgiving.
The Giants then turned to Tommy DeVito, who did not play well in his first opportunity of the season and also injured his right arm. DeVito’s second start came a few weeks later and he promptly suffered a concussion. DeVito finished the season playing in three games with two starts (0-2). He completed a somewhat misleading 70 percent of his passes, with no touchdowns and no interceptions.
After DeVito got hurt the first time, Lock started the next two games until he also got injured (heel/left elbow). Then Lock started the final three games. In all, Lock played in eight games with five starts. He went 1-4 as a starter, completing less than 60 percent of his passes, throwing six touchdown passes and five interceptions (including three that went for defensive scores). Lock’s only bright spot was his Week 17 game against the Indianapolis Colts where he threw four touchdown passes and no interceptions, ran for a touchdown, and was credited with a 155.3 passer rating. Ironically, that performance prevented the Giants from drafting Cam Ward.
ADDITIONS/SUBTRACTIONS: The Giants are no longer shackled to the corpse of Daniel Jones, having cut him last November. They also had no interest in re-signing Drew Lock, who returned to Seattle. Tommy DeVito was re-signed an exclusive rights free agent.
The additions were significant. After failing to trade for Matthew Stafford or signing Aaron Rodgers, the Giants signed Russell Wilson from the Steelers and Jameis Winston from the Browns a couple of weeks after free agency started. New York also traded back up into the 1st round of the 2025 NFL Draft to select Jaxson Dart.
TRAINING CAMP STORY LINES: Despite only averaging 16 points per game in 2024, the Giants brought back their entire starting offense with the exception of Daniel Jones. It is difficult to draw any other conclusion than the New York Giants brain trust believe Jones was the heart of the team’s offensive woes. Enter Russell Wilson, the likely opening day starter, and Jaxson Dart, the team’s second 1st-round selection who waits in the wings.
Wilson had a very strong spring in non-contact OTAs and the mini-camp. In fact, with Malik Nabers sidelined, he was arguably the best player on offense. Just as importantly, his fellow teammates appear to have embraced his leadership style, direction, and positivity. How much does the 36-year old, 10x Pro Bowler still have left in the tank? The book on Wilson is he is a great deep ball thrower, will dump the ball off to the backs, does not scramble as well as he used to, is reluctant to throw over the middle, takes a lot of sacks, but doesn’t turn the ball over. Will the switch from Jones to Wilson turn around the fortunes of the offense and dramatically improve scoring?
It’s pretty obvious that Brian Daboll pushed for Jaxson Dart. The big debate is how long should Dart sit? Some say the sooner he plays, the better. Others argue the best-case scenario is for him to wait until 2026. What is interesting is that Dart already received significant second-team and some first-team reps in the spring. Factoring into the decision is the job security status of Joe Schoen and Brian Daboll, with Daboll likely being more vulnerable.
ON THE BUBBLE: Barring a trade, it would appear that Tommy DeVito’s best chance to remain with the team is the Practice Squad, assuming another team does not sign him.
FROM THE COACHES: Daboll on Russell Wilson: “(His leadership has) been excellent. Not just on the offensive side of the ball, I’d say within the entire team, defense, special teams, he’s a very good communicator. He sees the game well. Obviously, he’s done it at a high level. The details of which he approaches his job with, not just his footwork and his eyes and mechanics, but also the other positions, the communication with the line. It’s really been good.”
Quarterbacks Coach Shea Tierney on Russell Wilson (Tierney was with Wilson at NC State): “He’s the same guy he was when he was 18 years old. Still has a great work ethic. Prepares every day like it’s new for him. Takes notes. He is the definition of a pro… Still really accurate with the football, he still makes really good decisions. One of the great deep-ball throwers there’s been. None of that has changed.”
Daboll on Jaxson Dart: “He has done excellent. He’s picking up the information. It’s really good to have Russ and Jameis and even Tommy because Tommy’s been in the system for a few years here. And he’s kind of the head statesman in terms of that and all the adjustments that take place or the calls. He’s fit right in with those guys. He’s smart. He’s aggressive with the football, which I like. And then the true test will be once we start and there’s live hitting and preseason games and things like that. But he’s progressed since he’s been here to where he is now. He’s made good improvement.”
Shea Tierney on Jaxson Dart: “An instinctive player. Does a really good job of knowing where to go with the ball, even if he is not fully aware of what is going on yet just as a rookie. Has really good spacial awareness. All of the things we thought we saw on tape.”
FINAL THOUGHTS: Before OTAs began, I was one of the few thinking Jaxson Dart could surprise and start in the opener. But Russell Wilson has been so impressive on and off the field this spring that I’m convinced Wilson will start. Indeed, because the players have taken to Wilson’s leadership style so well, I think something really bad has to be happening for Daboll to now make the switch, or he could risk losing the locker room.
The 2025 New York Giants are going to provide us with a great A-B test on Daniel Jones and the team’s management. If the offense dramatically increases its production with Wilson and the rest of the offensive team basically staying the same, that will be very telling. On the other hand, if the offense continues to be one of the worst in the NFL, Schoen and Daboll will really be on the hot seat.
Do the Giants make the switch to Dart? And if so, when? Your guesses are as good as mine. Some have argued that if the team is struggling, Daboll will be forced to start Dart in order to save his job. I’m not sure I buy that. If Dart struggles, as most rookie quarterbacks do, that may make Daboll even more vulnerable. On the other hand, does Daboll dare to pull a Tom Coughlin and bench the veteran if the team is doing well? (Coughlin benched Kurt Warner when the Giants were 5-4. The team only won one more game with Eli Manning as a rookie in 2004).
FINAL DEPTH CHART: Russell Wilson, Jameis Winston, Jaxson Dart (I do think the Giants will listen to trade offers for Winston and DeVito before the final cuts).
