Big Blue View
Quarterback stuff, Dexter Lawrence, and more
New York Giants players report for training camp on Tuesday, with the first practice set for Wednesday morning at Quest Diagnostics Training Center. With that in mind, here are some things I think about as our summer siesta ends and football begins.
Head coach Brian Daboll has said again and again this offseason that Russell Wilson will be the Week 1 starter at quarterback for the Giants. Nothing that happened this spring, where Wilson took the vast majority of first-team reps was widely praised by everyone within the Giants who was asked about him, indicated Daboll’s words were, well, just words.
Yet, the speculation has continued, mostly around the idea that rookie Jaxson Dart could play so well this summer that he leaves the Giants no choice but to give him the starting job right away.
Judy Battista, Mike Garafolo and Tom Pelissero discussed that topic recently on ‘The Insiders.’ At Yahoo! Sports, Jason Fitz, Jori Epstein and Frank Schwab raised the idea that Dart could win the job with an exceptional training camp.
Yes, Wilson won the Seattle Seahawks’ job after being selected in the third round in 2012. His competition, though, was Matt Flynn, a career backup who cashed in with the Seahawks after one 480-yard, six-touchdown game with the Green Bay Packers.
Dart is not competing with Flynn. Dart has a Super Bowl-winning, 10-time Pro Bowl quarterback who is a borderline Hall of Famer at the top of the depth chart. Yes, we all know Wilson isn’t in his prime.
I think Dart should, and will, start games at some point during the 2025 season. I just can’t see a world where the Giants, even though they have no long-term commitment or allegiance to Wilson, disrespect him that way.
Dexter Lawrence is considered the best or second-best defensive tackle in football, depending on which pre-2025 season ranking you happen to be reading.
That makes him not only a tremendous and critically-important player for the Giants, it makes him a tremendous value. Lawrence signed a four-year, $87.5 million contract with $46.5 million guaranteed prior to the 2023 season.
Here is where Lawrence’s contract sits among the highest-paid defensive tackles:
After 2025, Lawrence has two years left on his contract. You can bet that he and his agent, Joel Segal, see the market. At some point in the not-too-distant future, Lawrence is going to begin making noises about an extension at an annual value of $32 million or more. Or, if things continue for the Giants the way they have for most of Lawrence’s career, he will be looking for a new employer.
That’s just the business of the NFL.
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