The quarterback matchup everyone had circled is on hold.
New York Giants rookie Jaxson Dart is expected to miss an “extended period of time” after suffering a serious knee injury in Monday night’s loss to the Los Angeles Rams, according to NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo and Ian Rapoport. Dart was originally thought to have only an MCL sprain after being sandwiched between two Rams defenders, but an MRI showed more damage, and the injury could even send him to season-ending injured reserve.
That knocks him out of the lineup for the New Orleans Saints’ Week 6 trip to New York, which means the long-discussed Dart-Tyler Shough showdown will have to wait. The two quarterbacks have been linked since draft night: the Giants moved up from No. 34 to No. 25 to take Dart, while the Saints grabbed Shough at No.
- Shough also beat Dart in the fan-voted Pepsi Zero Sugar Rookie of the Year race and finished ahead of him in Associated Press voting for Offensive Rookie of the Year.
The rivalry talk never really stopped after that, either. New York-area radio voices, including WFAN’s Tommy Lugauer, kept pushing the comparison between the two passers. Dart did face the Saints last season when New York played in New Orleans, but Spencer Rattler was the quarterback that day, so the two draft picks still haven’t gone head-to-head.
For now, the Giants will turn to former Saints quarterback Jameis Winston, who is set to lead them out of the tunnel when New Orleans comes to town. Winston signed a two-year contract extension earlier in September, and Jake Haener is behind him on the depth chart after New Orleans drafted him in 2023.
For the Saints, the bigger concern is keeping Shough upright. That job gets harder without Kelvin Banks Jr. at left tackle.
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