Jaxson Dart was checked for a concussion on Sunday for the fifth time in 10 games, dating back to the preseason. He questioned NFL protocol after a fairly harmless hit that did not appear to cause any visible signs of a head injury.
The narrative surrounding the rookie quarterback’s style of play led to increased scrutiny.
It seems as though the National Football League is trying to make a statement about player protection. Dart just so happens to be the sacrificial lamb, if you will.
Jaxson Dart takes hits.
The New York Giants drafted their franchise signal-caller with the No. 25 overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft with hopes he would not need to play at all this season but Russell Wilson was not the answer. As a result, Dart was thrust into the starting lineup as a rookie at the end of September.
He has since been evaluated for a concussion in five of his first 10 games, including the preseason, and missed two weeks with a head injury.
It has been a significant topic of conversation around the league. Brian Daboll stormed into the injury tent to check on his quarterback at the beginning of the season. Dart dove head-first into a defender for a first down against the Eagles. He got absolutely clobbered by New England Patriots linebacker Harold Landry on Sunday Night Football. His critics and supporters beg him to protect his body by going down or getting out of bounds but his employer is not going to change him.
The “particular play” in question took place against the Washington Commanders. Jaxson Dart got crunched by a pair of defenders near the goal line.
Jaxson Dart checks out of the game after taking this hit. He has checked into the blue medical tent pic.twitter.com/A3X15nAAr3
— Talkin’ Giants (@TalkinGiants) December 14, 2025
The NFL uses unaffiliated neurotrauma consultants to help enforce its strict concussion protocol. An unaffiliated neurotrauma consultant determined in that moment that Dart needed to be evaluated for a head injury even though it was a fairly routine hit that other quarterbacks take multiple times per game.
He went to the sideline for a brief moment before he was cleared to return.
The New York Giants question concussion protocol.
Jaxson Dart did not understand why he had to come out of the game. He thought it was weird.
"I'm not really sure what the reason was I had to come out of the game. It was just weird, I don't understand it"
— Giants Videos (@SNYGiants) December 14, 2025
Jaxson Dart on being evaluated after taking a hit in today's loss: pic.twitter.com/W8hL51pnYX
Interim head coach Mike Kafka was also confused by what else could be done in that specific scenario.
“We’re not gonna change much in terms of how we play the game,” he said. “I think just having the designed thought process for how we scheme it up. I thought we had a couple of opportunities where, he’s protected, he’s got someone out in front of him. In that one particular play where he got out, that was a pass. I think there’s really not much you could do there. But, of course, we have his health, we have everyone’s health in mind when we call plays and we think about it.”
The Giants do not want to limit their quarterback.
“You saw it today in full color when he’s out there scrambling and making huge plays with his feet,” Kafka said. “And he’s an aggressive ballplayer. So we’re not gonna take away his stinger in that aspect.
“But he knows. He knows, he’s a smart football player, he knows when to protect himself and when he needs to go and make a play. And I trust him to do that. And that’s probably the most important thing: The guys on the field trust him to go do that.”
All of the outside criticism toward how Jaxson Dart plays the game has created this situation. The league is obvious paying close attention to one specific player because it wants to show it does things the right way. It is one thing to pull him out after the hit on Sunday Night Football a few weeks back. He got rocked.
To take him out after the hit on Sunday is overcompensating. There has to be consistency.