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John's fantasy football analysis for the New York Giants quarterback position battle. Will Russell Wilson, Jameis Winston, or Jaxson Dart start at QB in 2025? Player outlooks and projections.
The New York Giants have a completely different quarterback room set for 2025 than they did in 2024. With Daniel Jones having departed the team last season, the team signed QBs Russell Wilson and Jameis Winston and drafted former Ole Miss signal-caller Jaxson Dart in the 2025 NFL Draft.
The team likely thought highly of Dart, as it saw fit to trade back into the first round to select him at No. 25, giving up its No. 34 pick (the second pick of Round 2), the 99th selection, and a third-rounder in 2026. Dart is just 22 years old, so it has quite a bit of faith in him despite his young age.
Still, the presence of Wilson and Winston means that Dart getting the starting job is no guarantee. Both QBs have had their struggles in recent seasons, though they're quite different as players. Let's break down as many of the factors at play here as we can!
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Who Will Start At QB For The Giants In Week 1?
The answer to this is also the most obvious and boring -- Wilson will likely be the team's QB1 when the games start. Dart, it seems, needs time to develop, and the team has expressed on some occasions that it'd rather ease him in than throw him to the wolves.
And it makes sense from a scheduling perspective, at least. The Giants will face a murderer's row of tough teams in the first half of the season. They're set to face the Dallas Cowboys, Kansas City Chiefs, Washington Commanders, Los Angeles Chargers, and have two matchups with the Philadelphia Eagles in that span.
Giants 2025 Schedule:
Week 1, Sept. 7: at Washington
Week 2, Sept. 14: at Dallas
Week 3, Sept. 21: vs. Chiefs [SNF]
Week 4, Sept. 28: vs. Chargers
Week 5, Oct. 5: at Saints
Week 6, Oct. 9: vs. Eagles [TNF]
Week 7, Oct. 19: at Broncos
Week 8, Oct. 26: at Eagles
Week 9, Nov. 2:… pic.twitter.com/KQDMSb2oW2— SleeperGiants (@SleeperGiants) May 14, 2025
Throwing Dart straight into the teeth of that schedule doesn't seem like the brightest idea. Especially not for his confidence, and that's huge for NFL players. Wilson has a ton of NFL experience under his belt and is at least capable of running a semi-functional offense, as he did last season with the Pittsburgh Steelers.
So, this isn't a super tough question to answer. Starting Winston with his gunslinging style of play that often puts the ball in harm's way might not be extremely intelligent, either. It would be hilarious to see another 30-touchdown and 30-interception season, though.
Jameis Winston just threw a walk-off pick six to end the season AND join the 30-30 club with TDs and interceptions 😱 pic.twitter.com/sjK1JVc5xF
— Whistle (@WhistleSports) December 29, 2019
I find it hard to believe any other outcome. Expect to see Wilson take the field in Week 1.
Will Russell Wilson Be Benched During The Season?
Considering how tough the Giants' schedule is and how Wilson wasn't even extended by the Pittsburgh Steelers last season, I'd say he might not last long as the starter. It's even more interesting that the Steelers didn't opt to re-sign him, considering how awful the free-agent quarterback market was after the 2024 season.
🚨 BREAKING #Steelers Russell Wilson will not return to the team, Pittsburgh going in another direction. #HereWeGo #SteelersNation pic.twitter.com/S34WxgJJPu
— NFL Rumors (@nflrums) February 6, 2025
Wilson again had a nice touchdown-to-interception ratio and passer rating in Pittsburgh. The problem is that the offense would often stall due to his unwillingness to risk putting the ball in harm's way on throws targeting the middle of the field. And that's where Giants star receiver Malik Nabers thrives.
If Russell Wilson ends up being the NY Giants starter (which seems likely at this point), it could be bad news for Malik Nabers.
Wilson has a real tendency to avoid throwing over the intermediate and deep middle of the field, limiting his pass attempts targeting posts, slants,… https://t.co/nhLPtuNcPz
— Dataroma (@ffdataroma) March 26, 2025
Nabers' fantasy managers will likely be fuming in just a short time. But more importantly for this situation, it could lead to a quick souring of the fan base toward Wilson, and a short lifespan for him as the lead guy. Nabers was the engine the team's offense ran through last season.
The young receiver was clearly the best player on the team in each game that he played, but injuries to the offensive line and resulting poor quarterback play held him back all year. Wilson being unable to get him the ball as much as possible could lead to a disaster.
Malik Nabers dynasty managers with Jameis Winston as their starting QB
Vs
Malik Nabers dynasty managers with Russell Wilson pic.twitter.com/HkwrvJv0dc
— Theo Gremminger (@TheOGfantasy) March 25, 2025
Perhaps it's true that Wilson has extended his career thus far by being very careful with the ball. But he's somehow scored 47 total touchdowns compared to just 13 interceptions in the last two seasons. His nine lost fumbles are a red flag, I guess.
More so, it underscores his inability to elevate a team. Wilson is perfectly happy to take sacks as long as he's sure he doesn't hurt his precious passer rating and TD:INT ratios. That's not conducive to winning football games.
When Will Jaxson Dart Get A Shot?
First, I should mention that it's unlikely Winston ever gets the start unless an injury occurs. If Wilson gets hurt early in the season, it would seem foolish for the Giants to rush out Dart and abandon their plan of letting him sit for a time and learn the offense, the playbook, and do his film study.
In that situation, it would make sense for Winston to play. Dart, then, would seemingly only get rushed into the job if there were somehow injuries to both Wilson and Winston. That's pretty unlikely, as both have been pretty durable over their careers.
Jaxson Dart. Bucket. pic.twitter.com/2HnKeUQHWR
— Jacob Gibbs (@jagibbs_23) March 7, 2025
Dart has the talent to start in Year 1, according to my analysis of him as a player. So, I strongly believe it will happen at some point. It's just a matter of when. And after the Giants' horrid stretch of games in Weeks 1-8, the schedule lightens up a bit. Just a little bit.
The games against the New England Patriots and Las Vegas Raiders should be nice. Still, after eight games, New York could easily have a record of 2-6, and at that point, the fans will be clamoring to get Dart out there. And if the rookie shows promise, he could save the jobs of general manager Joe Schoen and head coach Brian Daboll.
Jaxson Dart connecting with Tre Harris on a deep post.. pic.twitter.com/YIgDCOa5q5
— Adam Carter (@impactfbdata) May 22, 2025
I believe there's a solid chance he can save their jobs, too. Dart has no problem locking onto his No. 1 target. He's used to doing it at Ole Miss and helped wide receiver Tre Harris have a fantastic senior season, if you exclude the games missed due to injuries.
When Dart faced Arkansas in 2024, a game in which Harris missed, he helped WR Jordan Watkins to a stat line of eight catches for 245 yards and five touchdowns. The Giants don't have many other receiving options besides Nabers. Dart should feed the hell out of him.
Jaxson Dart throwing 20+ yards downfield in 2024:
🔹 37/88 (42.0%) with 47.7% adjusted completion rate
🔹 1,517 yards (which led the country)
🔹 17-4 TD-INT ratio
🔹 25 Big Time Throws, 6 Turnover Worthy Plays per PFF pic.twitter.com/7Hf7FwDer8— Anthony Rivardo (@Anthony_Rivardo) April 25, 2025
Once he does get the job, I believe he'll keep it for the long term. Dart improved every season he played in college, and the tape from his senior season was especially impressive. He also has a bit of underrated rushing upside -- he's not the fastest, but at 6-foot-2 and 223 pounds, he has the size to handle some rushing work.
The second Eagles matchup in Week 8 seems like the perfect time to bench Wilson. He'll likely struggle against Philadelphia defensive coordinator Vic Fangio's defense, which is one of the best in the league. Their secondary was elite last season. So, around the middle of the year is when Dart should get his shot.
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