New York Giants quarterback Jaxson Dart addressed teammates in a meeting on Wednesday, discussing his decision to introduce the President of the United States at a campaign-style rally for Republican Rep. Mike Lawler in New York last week.
According to NFL Media, which also reported that other team leaders such as edge rushers Brian Burns and Kayvon Thibodeaux and backup quarterback Jameis Winston were heard from at the meeting, the Giants are "moving forward" and "worked to put it behind them."
Dart was previously criticized by fellow 2025 first-round pick Abdul Carter for introducing Donald Trump at the rally. "Thought this (expletive) was AI," Carter wrote in a since-deleted tweet, in reference to a video showing Dart's introduction of the president. "What we doing, man?"
The post went viral, and the perceived political disagreement between teammates quickly turned into a controversy, with people on Twitter predictably taking sides based on their respective leanings. Carter, however, stated the next day that he and Dart were on good terms. "Me & JD6 are good!" he wrote in another since-deleted tweet. "We spoke earlier as Men. Yall can keep yall narratives."
Giants tackle Jermaine Eluemunor also downplayed the idea of the incident creating any sort of division within the locker room, quote-tweeting a post from a reporter that claimed Dart had divided the locker room and responding that said locker room is "fine."
The public disagreement between teammates was the first real misstep in a Giants offseason that has generally been extremely well-regarded after the team hired John Harbaugh as its new head coach, selected Arvell Reese and Francis Mauigoa in the top 10 of this year's NFL Draft and signed several quality free agents.
New York finished last season with a record of just 4-13 and will need to take a significant step forward in what will be Dart's first full season as the starter if it is going to approach or exceed its preseason over-under of 7.5 wins.
