Jaxson Dart is done for the year. The Giants quarterback tore up his knee in Monday night’s loss to the Rams, and the diagnosis came back with two problems instead of one: MCL damage and a meniscus injury.
Surgery is required. He has been placed on injured reserve. New York’s quarterback plan for 2026 lasted two games.
The Giants Have One Quarterback on the Roster
That is not an exaggeration. With Dart on IR, Jameis Winston is the only quarterback on the active roster.
New York recently gave Winston a two-year, $13 million extension, which now looks like the most important piece of business the front office did all offseason. He is the starter by default and by contract.
Behind him is nothing. The team may promote Jake Haener from the practice squad and is working the phones for outside help, though anyone acquired this week is unlikely to be ready for Sunday against Tennessee.
The Trade Market Is Already Forming
Five names have surfaced as realistic targets, and the logic behind each is about coaching relationships more than talent.
Tyler Huntley spent four seasons in Baltimore and Greg Roman is on the Giants staff. Justin Fields played for Matt Nagy as a rookie in Chicago in 2021, and Nagy is New York’s offensive coordinator. Mitch Trubisky also played three seasons under Nagy in Chicago, where they went 25-13 together.
Anthony Richardson is the swing-for-it option. He requested a trade earlier in the offseason and his rookie deal expires after this season, which means no long-term commitment for a team taking a flier.
Joe Flacco at 41 is the veteran floor. He averaged 272.7 passing yards per game across six starts in 2025.
What I Would Do
Trubisky. The Nagy connection is real, the system install would take days rather than weeks, and the Giants do not need a quarterback who can win them games. They need a quarterback who can run the offense if Winston goes down.
Richardson is the exciting answer and the wrong one for a 1-1 team trying to stay in a race. You do not hand a developmental project the keys in Week 4.
The Bigger Loss Is the Development Year
Dart was supposed to spend 2026 learning behind Winston, taking situational reps, and arriving in 2027 ready. Instead he spends it rehabbing.
That is the cost that will not show up in the standings. Young quarterbacks need snaps, and a knee surgery in September wipes out an entire year of them.
New York’s Season Is Not Over
The Giants are 1-1 with a functional veteran under center and a defense that can keep games close. Winston has started plenty of NFL football and has a live arm.
But the margin just shrank to nothing. One more injury at the position and this becomes a lost season, which is exactly why the phones are ringing this week.
A longtime sports reporter, Carlos Garcia has written about some of the biggest and most notable athletic events of the last 5 years. He has been credentialed to cover MLS, NBA and MLB games all over the United States. His work has been published on Fox Sports, Bleacher Report, AOL and the Washington Post.