Jaxson Dart’s night for the New York Giants turned ugly almost immediately against the Los Angeles Rams, with the quarterback suffering a frightening knee injury on the game’s first drive.
Dart was trying to get a pass off to tight end Theo Johnson when Rams defenders Byron Young and Josaiah Stewart came crashing in. The hit left Dart’s left knee bending inward in alarming fashion, and he instantly reached for it.
He did manage to get off the field under his own power, but it was clear he was hurting. Dart walked gingerly, looked frustrated, then headed to the locker room. Jameis Winston took over at quarterback before Dart was later carted off for further tests.
The injury was a brutal turn for the Giants, who were trying to follow up their Week 1 win over the Dallas Cowboys. In that victory, Dart threw for 230 yards and three touchdowns while also rushing for 54 yards.
The former Ole Miss quarterback is trying to make a major jump in his second NFL season after a promising rookie year that was interrupted by injuries. The Giants drafted him No.25 overall.
Before the injury, Dart had shared a sideline moment with his girlfriend Marissa Ayers, who posed for pictures in a red dress.
The Giants’ problems deepened when Malik Nabers went down in pain with what appeared to be a shoulder injury. Nabers had been going after a catch when he ran off the field, dropped to his knees and drew immediate attention from medical staff.
When ESPN came back from a commercial break, Nabers was sitting up on the bench and rubbing his shoulder. He eventually returned to the game.
Dart’s injury also came one day after two other quarterbacks were dealing with their own scares. Jayden Daniels dislocated his elbow while trying to brace himself during the Commanders’ 37-20 loss at Dallas, the same injury he suffered last November before missing a month and then aggravating it when he returned.
Meanwhile, Bears quarterback Caleb Williams was carted to the locker room with a hamstring injury in Chicago’s loss to the Vikings. Coach Ben Johnson said Williams’ right hamstring issue is a “week-to-week” situation and added that he does not expect him to practice this week, though he has not ruled him out for the Bears’ game against the Philadelphia Eagles next Monday night.
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