New York Giants quarterback Jaxson Dart briefly exited the game against the Philadelphia Eagles in the third quarter, and coach Brian Daboll was heated on the sideline as he awaited an update on his new starter’s status.
Dart was slow to get up after taking a hard hit from Eagles linebacker Patrick Johnson, but he jogged off the field on his own and went to the injury tent to be evaluated for a concussion. Coaches are not allowed in the injury tent while medical personnel examine players.
However, Daboll was shown on the broadcast looking in the tent and later yelling at Dr. Scott A. Rodeo — the Giants’ team orthopedist who was on the sideline and not involved in the medical check — as he anxiously waited for Dart to complete the concussion evaluation. Rookie running back Cam Skattebo also went into the injury tent while Dart was in there and was asked to leave, per the “Thursday Night Football” broadcast.
Daboll said after the game that he apologized to Rodeo.
“Look, if you’ve ever been on an NFL sideline, there’s a lot of emotions,” Daboll said at his postgame news conference. “And I certainly am an emotional guy. I apologized directly to our team physician. I just wanted (Dart’s) ass out there — if he was OK — but I wanted the process … like, we were getting ready to go for it on a potential fourth down. I would’ve burned a timeout if he could’ve came out there, so I was asking, ‘How long is it going to take?’
“So, again, you want your guy out there. Not at risk of anything else. But he came out, ‘I think he’s gonna be good.’ I’m like, ‘Is he gonna be good or not? I’m gonna call a timeout on fourth down and go for this.’ So, I love our doctors. … I apologized. I was in the wrong. But he’s all right. He gave me a hug.”
Dart helped the Giants build a lead against the reigning Super Bowl champions at MetLife Stadium. He completed 17 of his 25 passes for 195 yards and one touchdown. He also had 13 rushes for 58 yards and another score on the ground. He was replaced by Russell Wilson for two plays before returning on the Giants’ next drive after clearing his concussion check, and New York went on to win 34-17.
Dart and Skattebo were on the Prime Video postgame show, with Skattebo joking that he “was trying to save the trainer from Jaxson” when he entered the tent. Dart was asked what Daboll said to him after he got out of the blue medical tent. “He said, ‘Are you good?’ I said, ‘Hell yeah,’” Dart replied.
The Giants turned to Dart after an 0-3 start behind Wilson. Selected with the 25th pick in this year’s NFL Draft, Dart is the only quarterback the Giants have drafted since Daboll and general manager Joe Schoen took over four years ago.
Thursday’s injury scare marked the third time in Dart’s last four starts — dating back to the preseason — that the rookie quarterback paid a visit to the injury tent. He was evaluated for a concussion in his final preseason game against the New England Patriots. Dart also exited his first regular-season start, a win against the Los Angeles Chargers, to be checked for a concussion.