If the Giants were able to do what they wanted to do, Drake Maye would be their quarterback and Jaxson Dart would be playing for … someone else.
What they wanted was not realistic, though, as the Patriots heading into the 2024 NFL Draft had no intention of trading out of the No. 3 spot. The Giants investigated this, would have had to ship their top picks in that draft and the next draft to have a shot, and even then, the Patriots were not really interested in making a deal. They had been existing in quarterback wilderness ever since Tom Brady left New England after the 2019 season and already swung and missed once (Mac Jones with the 15th pick in 2021) at finding the heir apparent. They were ready for another turn at bat.
It was a top-heavy quarterback class, and sure enough, three of them went Nos. 1, 2, 3 that year: Caleb Williams to the Bears, Jayden Daniels to the Commanders and Maye to the Patriots. The Giants pivoted and at No. 6 selected wide receiver Malik Nabers.
Thus, the Giants had to exist one more season in quarterback purgatory, finally pulling the plug on Daniel Jones to trigger a wholesale rejiggering of the position. General manager Joe Schoen shrewdly read the first-round machinations in the 2025 draft and was able to strike a trade with the Texans that landed Dart with the 25th pick.
[Notigroup Newsroom in collaboration with other media outlets, with information from the following sources]
