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Giants coach Brian Daboll was a happy man after New York's win on Sunday. Daboll found his quarterback Jaxson Dart on the field after New York's first victory of the season and gave him a hug.
The Jaxson Dart era in New York is officially underway and got off to a winning start, as the Giants upset the previously unbeaten Los Angeles Chargers, 21-18, on Sunday at MetLife Stadium.
Dart was efficient, but somewhat limited by a left hamstring injury he suffered in the first half. The bad news is the Giants may have lost star wide receiver Malik Nabers to a torn ACL. Nabers was carted off in the first half, and the fear is that he tore his left ACL.
Dart got his NFL starting QB career off to a good start with a 15-yard touchdown run on his first drive. The Giants went up-tempo in the Ole Miss product's first game.
Dart was efficient, but not spectacular, in the first half in leading the Giants to a 13-10 halftime lead (7 of 11 for 59 yards; six carries for 44 yards and a TD), but the rookie began grabbing his left hamstring to stretch it out late in the first half and was noticeably limping on the last drive before halftime as the Chargers have turned up the pressure.
Dart's first touchdown throw came on a three-yard shovel pass to tight end Theo Johnson.
"It's just a football game, that's just the best way to describe it," Dart said after the game when asked how he felt mentally and physically. "Obviously, this experience was a special one, being my first one."
Rookie Cam Skattebo ran for 79 yards on 25 carries as the Giants rushed for 161 yards on the afternoon.
For Los Angeles, Justin Herbert threw two crucial interceptions that put the Giants in good field position. He finished 23 of 41 for 203 yards passing. Dart only threw for 111, but added 54 yards on the ground with a passing and rushing touchdown. Rookie running back Omarion Hampton was a beast and rushed for 128 yards, including a 54-yard touchdown, on just 12 carries.
Giants pass rush dominates
Abdul Carter, Brian Burns and Kayvon Thibodeaux combined for 20 pressures, per NextGen stats. Carter had five quarterback hits, Burns 4 and a sack, Thibodeaux 3 and a sack. Herbert was under duress most of the day and wasn't really able to throw the ball deep downfield.
Defensive tackle Dexter Lawrence also added an interception and almost took it to the house.
Major loss
New York lost Nabers in the first half with what is believed to be a torn ACL. The rest of the receivers were basically non-existent the rest of the game once Nabers left and the Chargers brought more guys on the pass rush. The Giants may need to add another pass catcher.
The Chargers suffered a huge loss, too, as left tackle Joe Alt left the game in the first quarter with a high ankle sprain.
Quotable
Lawrence says the Giants have "ballers" on their defensive line that want to dominate every game: "We put that pressure on ourselves, we want it. We embrace it, we don't shy away from it. We've got to continue to be consistent and show up every week."
"I want to give a big shoutout to Russ, I know this week probably wasn't the easiest thing but he handled it like a professional." - Jaxson Dart
