There has been a predictable external reaction to Giants quarterback Jaxson Dart introducing President Donald Trump at a New York rally on Friday. There has also been an unpredictable internal reaction.
Giants linebacker Abdul Carter, who like Dart was a first-round pick in 2025, posted a Saturday morning message on Twitter after Dart debuted as pro-Donald.
“Thought this sh!t was AI,” Carter said. “What we doing man.”
Carter’s public complaint will make for some interesting text messages among Giants players and coaches this weekend. Things will get even more interesting when the team reconvenes on Wednesday for the next cluster of OTA practices.
Months before the first game of his first season, it’s an unexpected test for coach John Harbaugh, who already has assumed a non-neutral position as to the man who has become one of the most polarizing political figures the nation has ever seen.
Let’s be realistic about the situation. Beyond the fact that the 47th president’s approval rating has fallen far below 47 percent, most of the players in the NFL will be inclined not to embrace his policies, practices, and petulant remarks — dating all the way back to when Trump weighed in on NFL players protesting during the national anthem by saying, “Wouldn’t you love to see one of these NFL owners, when somebody disrespects our flag, to say, ‘Get that son of the bitch off the field right now'? Out. He’s fired. He’s fired!’”
However this one plays out, the Giants have an issue that needs to be resolved. And it traces to a decision made by the second-year quarterback who is trying to establish himself both as a capable player, and as a competent team leader.
Dart has every right to do what he wants. To support who he wants. To say what he wants. But, as Carter’s response shows, the other players on the team have the right to say what they want, too.
And this is precisely the kind of thing that can get in the way of building the kind of rapport necessary to navigate a long and demanding NFL season.
Well, this won’t upset anyone.
Giants quarterback Jaxson Dart introduced President Donald Trump at a Friday event in Rockland County, New York.
It’s a risky move for any player who hopes to appeal to everyone. Especially since Dart plays for a team named for one of the bluest of the blue American cities.
Throw in the fact that Trump’s approval rating is currently tanking, the risk is greater than it would be to show up for and to support a popular political figure. Regardless, Dart can expect to get at least some of the same kind of blowback that those with a different perspective have gotten when they choose to speak out against the policies and practices of the current administration.
But perhaps not as much. One side is much quicker to say to dissenting views, “Shut up and dribble.” While also welcoming the input of athletes and entertainers who chime in with an opinion that meshes with their own.
My own view is this: Say whatever you want. Support whoever you want. But recognize that, yes, there may be some scrutiny and criticism that comes from doing anything other than staying above the fray.
For a guy who has yet to fully establish himself, it’s a bolder move than it would be for a quarterback or any other player who has become one of the best at the position he plays.
The Giants have lost a key member of their defensive line during Organized Team Activities.
Roy Robertson-Harris tore his Achilles during yesterday’s practice, according to Dan Duggan of TheAthletic.com.
Robertson-Harris signed a two-year, $9 million contract with the Giants a year ago and started all 17 games last season. He had been working with the first-string defense at OTAs.
Achilles tendon tears are almost always season-ending injuries. It’s possible that with a fast recovery, a player who tears his Achilles in May could play by the end of the year, but it’s a long shot.
The Giants traded away their best defensive lineman, Dexter Lawrence, last month, so they’ve now lost two defensive linemen who started all 17 games last season. Free agent signings DJ Reader and Shelby Harris become even more important now, as does the development of sixth-round rookie Bobby Jamison-Travis.
Robertson-Harris is the second Giant to suffer a torn Achilles during offseason work. Rookie cornerback Thaddeus Dixon tore his Achilles last week.
By rule, NFL offseason practices are non-contact: No tackling, no blocking, no physical pass coverage, certainly no touching the quarterback. That makes it hard for the players to get the competitive juices flowing.
But Giants coach John Harbaugh says he still wants to see players looking competitive. He just wants them competitive with themselves, trying to get better every day than they were the day before.
“There’s no there’s no contact at all,” Harbaugh said. “You got to work with the guys that do that because guys get fired up, they want to go and you got to make sure that you can’t get near the quarterback. You can’t pull and push guys. There’s no physical contests out here. There’s no competition in the sense of you’re competing one-on-one to make a play because there’s no contact, and football is a contact sport. So, it’s more about I’m competing against myself, my technique, my assignment, my ability to execute really fast.”
Harbaugh says he’s impressed that players manage to avoid contact as well as they do.
“I think one of the things that’s amazing to me, I tell these guys this. . . . You’re standing right here on the sideline and you’re seeing how fast these guys move, right? And how big they are. And there’s 22 guys intersecting full speed. I’m just surprised that there’s not more more collisions in the intersection which goes to show you how talented these guys are. And I think it’s across the league in the NFL. For them to practice fast like this on a no-contact basis and not run into each other is just an incredible thing and it’s a testament to their abilities,” Harbaugh said.
Harbaugh said quarterback Jaxson Dart is a good example of a player who’s competing with himself, demanding nothing but completions when he knows the defense isn’t really competing.
“We are competing against ourselves, against execution,” Harbaugh said. “The offense should complete most passes because passes aren’t being contested at the catch point right now. So if we’re executing and doing things the right way, we should be completing passes out here. The ball shouldn’t hit the ground too often. He understands that and that’s why he wants things to be right, play after play.”
Giants General Manager Joe Schoen lost a significant amount of internal influence when the team hired coach John Harbaugh. Schoen’s willingness to adapt has helped secure his future in New York.
The Giants have announced that Schoen has signed a multi-year extension.
Schoen, we’re told, had been entering the last year of his contract with the team.
The move necessarily means that Schoen has made a solid impression on new coach John Harbaugh. The long-time Ravens coach’s arrival transformed the long-time reporting structure with the Giants. For decades, the G.M. ran the show, with the coach reporting to the G.M. Now, the coach and G.M. separately report to ownership.
It’s no surprise that ownership was willing to make a major change to the way they do business. The Giants have struggled since winning Super Bowl XLVI, 15 years ago. They’ve had a revolving door at coach and G.M. Harbaugh instantly has stabilized the organization — and he has determined in less than five months that he’ll be happy to partner with Schoen in the coming years.
