Mark Schlereth is getting the attention his hot take sought, but he’s wrong about what would be best for Dart
File this in the “wild offseason hot take aimed at getting attention — which it is getting — that is not going to happen.”
NFL analyst Mark Schlereth believes the Giants “rip off the Band-Aid,” cut Russell Wilson, and start Jaxson Dart from Week 1 of the 2025 season.
“The Giants should cut Russell Wilson and start Jaxson Dart … I think it’s just time to rip off the Band-Aid and say Jaxson Dart you’re our guy.”
Schlereth compared the situation to the Denver Broncos moving on from Wilson, drafting Bo Nix, and making the playoffs a season ago.
Valentine’s View
We know this is not going to happen.
I don’t think the situation is comparable to Denver. The Broncos, specifically head coach Sean Payton, did not want Wilson as the quarterback he tried to build around. The Broncos released him in March of 2024, then drafted Nix a few weeks later.
The Giants, with a mandate from John Mara, stating that acquiring a quarterback of the future was the biggest priority of the offseason, seemingly always intended to select a quarterback early in the draft, if possible.
The Giants signed Wilson and Jameis Winston specifically so that they would not have to put a rookie quarterback in the scenario Schlereth is clamoring for.
In head coach Brian Daboll’s estimation, Dart had an “excellent” spring. That doesn’t mean he was perfect. Dart was up and down performance-wise. There were great throws and poor ones, and perhaps some hesitation in the pocket when he might have been unsure what he was seeing.
Did he give anyone a reason to think starting him Day 1 was the best way to handle his career development? Not from this vantage point.
Veteran NFL Draft analyst Matt Waldman, who specializes in offensive skill positions, and highly-regarded quarterback coach Jordan Palmer, both believe the Giants have a quarterback room and situation that will benefit Dart’s career.
Both say Wilson’s presence will be good for Dart.
“Russell Wilson’s a lot of things, but two things come to mind when I think of Russell,” Palmer said. “One, he’s a winner. In a world of stats I don’t care about he’s got a relevant stat. His first eight years in the NFL he won more games than anybody. How often do you win? That’s a good one.”
The second thing?
“The second thing about Russell Wilson that’s just true whether you like him or not is he is a pro,” Palmer said. “He approaches his offseason, his body, his mental and emotional state, his throwing mechanics. He’s all-in all the time.
“Jaxson’s going to be in the room with Brian Daboll and a guy who’s a winner and conducts himself at an elite professional level.”
Here is Waldman before the Giants drafted Dart:
“It’s a good quarterback room for a young quarterback,” Waldman said. “Even though some people might look at the narratives involving Russell Wilson and James Winston and go ‘how can that be a good quarterback room?’ But I think in a lot of ways it can.”
“Russell Wilson is a strong decision maker who puts the ball in a position for his receivers to win it And that means that’s great for Malik Nabers. He’s good in the play-action game. So, this is a team that Wilson could provide a lot of stability … When you watch the best of Russell Wilson you see a player that has an undying belief that he can help his team win.” …
“Now you have a quarterback room with two seasoned veterans who have played for multiple teams, who have worked with multiple coaches and systems, who have been to the playoffs, who’ve been to Super Bowls, who have won and lost Super Bowls in dramatic fashion. As a result of all that collective experience in a quarterback room is really important. And to have a quarterback, if you draft one this year, regardless of what happens to the coach the GM, and those quarterbacks in the future he’s gonna have one full year to sit and watch … It’s still not ideal, but it’s better than playing and being thrown every which way and not having veteran leadership mentorship in front of you and then being forced to look at a second scheme and not knowing how to approach it the way a pro would.”
Waldman also pointed to another benefit for a rookie quarterback of not playing right away, one that is not often considered:
“You’re having time to adjust,” Waldman said. “You don’t have to deal with the media in your face about you as a starter. You don’t have to deal with the complexities of coverage disguises and athletic ability of opponents.
“Meanwhile, because you’re making all this money now you can have a little more time to get your training set up, your house set up, your relatives in a level of perspective that they probably need to have knowing that now you are probably the richest person in your extended family and you have to deal with some people coming at you asking for things that maybe aren’t realistic.
“These are all things that take up bandwidth … all that bandwidth is saved to continue working at your craft behind the scenes, and that’s going to make you a lot better when you do step on the field.
“That’s all stuff that a lot of people don’t consider. They just expect guys to walk in and play.”
There seems to be a growing belief that Dart will start games this season. The Schlereth Plan, though, is highly unlikely and probably not the best thing for a guy the Giants hope will be their quarterback of the future.
