It had been a while since reporters had seen rookie quarterback Jaxson Dart at the podium for a Giants presser. So in his first conference since returning from the concussion that kept him sidelined for two games, the young signal-caller made sure to pay tribute to his since-fired coach, Brian Daboll.
“Obviously, there's been a lot that's happened since I’ve been up here, and I just want to acknowledge coach Dabs and all he did for me,” Dart, who will start in Week 13, said Friday. “When I look back on everything, it's really special to come to a place where a coach genuinely cares about you and loves you, and you have that personal relationship on and off the field. I just have all the respect in the world for him.
“I think he's an incredible offensive mind, I think he's done an amazing job developing me up until this point. And this business is a beast, man. Give a shoutout to [former defensive coordinator Shane Bowen] as well; we just weren’t able to get enough wins for them. But at the same time, got a lot of respect for them. And coach Dabs, who knows if I'm here without him? So I’ve got all the respect and the love for him.”
Watch that opening below:
Jaxson Dart opens his presser with his reaction to Brian Daboll’s firing pic.twitter.com/Eraso2FNXO
— Art Stapleton (@art_stapleton) November 28, 2025
The Giants fired Daboll in Week 10, after the Giants’ fourth consecutive loss. Although adding Dart into the mix built some momentum for an offense that struggled early on, the team continued to blow late leads and ultimately fell to 2–8 on the season at the time of the coach’s exit. Not long after, Bowen, the defensive coordinator, was fired, as well.
Dart alluded to this in his remarks, but there was a certain connection—or at least mutual respect—between him and Daboll, considering the Ole Miss product was purportedly hand-picked by the coach to be New York’s quarterback of the future. Indeed, the Giants actually traded up to take the Rebel with the 25th overall pick of the 2025 draft.
Now, however, it’ll be Dart alone leading Big Blue into the great unknown, while Daboll meanwhile searches for his next opportunity.
“I’m ready, I’ve been waiting for it,” Dart said of his upcoming return vs. the Patriots on Monday Night Football. “Obviously, these primetime games are ones you have circled on your calendar. So excited to go out there, go compete at a high level and do everything in my power to rally these guys, to put our team in the best situation when the clock hits zero that we're gonna come out with the win.”
The Giants are already out of the playoffs, so it doesn't really matter what happens in the game; still, we'll see if the rookie can finally put an end to New York's six-game skid.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Jaxson Dart Opens Post-Injury Presser With Classy Tribute to Brian Daboll.
