By Marc Lawrence, PlaybookSports.com — You just knew the other shoe was going to drop.
Monday night in Los Angeles, Jaxson Dart’s left knee met Byron Young and Josaiah Stewart.
First diagnosis: MCL sprain, a few weeks.
Tuesday’s imaging told a different story. Season-ending surgery is now on the table.
The Giants are in the quarterback market whether they like it or not.
Jameis Winston is the starter for now. Experience in Matt Nagy’s system is the selling point. Dual-threat juice is not.
Dart’s rookie year was 2,272 passing yards, 487 on the ground, 24 total scores. You don’t replace that overnight with a pocket passer who prefers to stay in the pocket.
Enter the whisper. Gary Myers floated Minnesota’s third-stringer J.J. McCarthy. Joe Schoen already kicked the tires in 2024 before taking Malik Nabers sixth overall.
McCarthy helped Jim Harbaugh win a national title in 2023. John Harbaugh is now on the sideline in East Rutherford. The brothers have a habit of circling back to players they already know.
Cost? A mid-round pick, give or take. Low-risk. McCarthy is 23, a few months older than Dart. Minnesota soured on him. New York could plug him into the same RPO package Dart was running — the one that does not fit Winston — and see if the kid can rebuild his stock.
Play well and he’s a trade chip next spring or Dart’s backup. Play poorly and you spent a fourth or fifth.
The catch is obvious. McCarthy still has to learn Nagy’s playbook. Winston already speaks the language.
Time is not a luxury in September.
Harbaugh did not come to New York to stand pat. If Dart is done, the G-Men can sit on Winston and hope the offense doesn’t stall, or they can make the small swing on a quarterback the new coach already likes.
Sometimes the cheapest chip is the one that still has some life left in it.
