Winston the starter, Giants could trade for QB

Vacchiano explores myriad trade options that the Giants could explore in a lengthy article, but ultimately determines that rolling with Winston, while QB Jaxson Dart (knee) is sidelined, is the team’s best course of action. According to Vacchiano, the Giants viewed Winston “as a solid veteran who was smart and talented enough to get them through a short stretch if Dart went down” when they signed him to a two-year, $13 million contract extension two weeks ago. “Their faith gets shakier when it’s a long-term proposition they were hoping to avoid,” but alas, this appears to be the situation the team is currently facing. If Winston can return to something resembling his 2019 Buccaneers form, when he posted a 5,109/33/30 passing stat line en route to an overall QB3 finish, he could facilitate usable outings for Giants pass catchers. Betting on that exact outcome is unwise, but Winston could be a QB1 streamer in the right situation.

Dart is set to undergo more testing on Tuesday after injuring his knee early in Monday night’s loss to the Rams. Garafolo said players usually take 4-6 weeks to recover from an MCL sprain, though the extent of Dart’s injury remains to be seen. Dart, according to ESPN’s Jordan Raanan, tried to talk Giants coaches into letting him re-enter Monday night’s game in the second half. Jameis Winston, who was miserably inaccurate and mistake-prone against the Rams, would figure to get at least a couple starts while Dart recovers. Winston should be picked up in superflex leagues ahead of the team’s Week 3 game against the Titans.

Winston came on in relief of the injured Dart after the team’s first possession but never really got the wheels turning in the defeat. He made numerous errant throws and poor decision, as evidenced by the poor completion rate, while averaging only 4.1 yards per pass attempt. Most egregious was a red zone interception with the team down 14-0 in the second quarter, which occurred on a badly under-thrown ball directed toward alpha receiver Malik Nabers. Safety Javon Holland did his part to almost single-handedly keep the team in the game, picking off Matthew Stafford and then both forcing and recovering a fumble on consecutive possessions following Winston’s interception, acts that would ultimately prove futile considering the offense’s inability to move the football. Winston could be headed for a start in Week 3, pending the status of Dart, and gets a much more forgiving matchup against the Titans. Fantasy managers in a pinch could do worse than starting the veteran W-eater.

Winston, 32, will remain in New York as QB Jaxson Dart’s mentor for the foreseeable future. He is a capable, fantasy-friendly backup who can bridge the gap if Dart misses time. Winston started two games last year, completing 37-of-65 passes for 567 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions, and rushing seven times for 23 yards and one touchdown while fumbling once.

There wasn’t much Jameis action in 2025, but what we got was certainly fun. He was 37-for-66 for 567 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions in three games (two starts) in his first season in New York. He took three sacks and averaged 15.3 yards per completion. He is still under contract for one more season at $3.95 million, but the Giants could also opt out of the deal and take on a $2.3 million dead cap hit. It remains to be seen what the Giants will do, and that decision would likely be made by their new head coach, but Jameis has shown enough to warrant being viewed as a top backup in the league and would be a nice insurance policy to have behind Jaxson Dart.

Duggan pointed to comments from Commanders head coach Dan Quinn ahead of Washington’s Week 15 game against Dart and the Giants as evidence that New York opponents are targeting Dart based on his willingness to take big hits, even to the head. “The quarterback is a very competitive dual-threat guy. He will try to run the ball like a running back,” Quinn told his defense last week. “He will try to run you over. He will try to stiff-arm. He doesn’t really run out of bounds. He doesn’t slide a whole bunch. We can get the ball off of him.” Dart took yet another shot to the head in the Giants’ Week 15 loss to the Commanders and was checked for a concussion before re-entering the ballgame. Dart has missed time with brain injuries this season and continues to lower his head as a rusher in the open field. It’s something he’ll need to change if he wants to have a long NFL career.

Winston, against all odds, also had a receiving touchdown on a trick play in the second half. Winston caught the ball at the ten yard line and shed a tackler before reaching the end zone in one of the more awkward scores in recent memory. Though he missed some routine throws in the second half, Winston had several strong throws to Wan’Dale Robinson, who had nine grabs for 156 yards and a touchdown in this one. Winston also connected with Isaiah Hodgins for a short score. The Giants tried to be run heavy for the second-straight week but were forced into a passing script in the second half. Winston delivered with a typical Winston game: Lots of air yards, some wild throws, and some clutch, fantasy-rich completions down the field. Winston would be a viable streamer in Week 13 against the Patriots if Jaxson Dart (concussion) remains out.

Winston gets the nod for a second consecutive week after Jaxson Dart was unable to clear the league’s concussion protocol. Last week against the Packers, Winston threw for 201-0-1 on 29 passes, but did punch in a short rushing touchdown to salvage an otherwise disappointing fantasy day. Winston will be on the fantasy radar as a mid QB2 with four teams on bye, but he matches up against a Lions defense that ranks eighth in passing yards allowed this season.

Dart logged back-to-back limited practices to open the week, but the rookie signal-caller will miss his second-straight game with his brain injury. This will put Jameis Winston in line to start against the Lions, who currently rank eighth in passing yards allowed but have also surrendered the ninth-most passing touchdowns on the season. Winston threw for 201 yards and one pick in his first start of the season, and will be in the QB2 range for fantasy.

There were no surprises in this Winston spot start, right down to the veteran backup getting away with, no joke, 4-5 dropped interceptions. He finally made the last one count, getting picked in the end zone as he tried to rally the Giants from a touchdown deficit with 0:40 remaining. Bitterly disappointing, if deeply unsurprising. Working with almost nothing in the Giants’ undermanned skill corps, Winston was busy handing it off when he wasn’t getting picks dropped, as the G-Men dialed up 38 rushes. It was an admirable enough job, if also one that will have Giants fans counting down the seconds until Jaxson Dart (concussion) can return. That will most likely be Week 12 against the Lions in Detroit.