This is likely Jaxson Dart’s “Welcome to the NFL” moment.
On Thursday night during the Giants’ final preseason game against the Patriots, the No. 25 overall pick gave the team a big concussion scare in the first quarter when he was tackled during a 23-yard scramble — and the rookie being pulled from the game for evaluation by medical staff.
He was cleared in concussion protocol and seemingly has vowed to learn his lesson.
“I’ll start sliding more,” the quarterback posted to his Instagram Story late on Thursday — a message that had disappeared from his profile as of Friday morning.
In his first NFL start, Dart seemed to get carried away, thinking he had an open field on fourth down late in the first quarter.
He showed off his speed and quick instincts, but his trip to the medical tent earned him some feedback from coach Brian Daboll, who urged him to slide rather than take unnecessary risks.
“I wouldn’t coach it out of him, just certain times you got to make the right decision,’’ Daboll said after the Giants’ 42-10 win over New England. “In this particular game, it’s probably a good time to slide, third preseason game. There’s a time and place. You’d like to take as few hits as you can. I like Jaxson’s competitiveness, his toughness. Got to make the right decision.’’
Dart appeared to agree in the aftermath.
“Never been taken out of the game for getting air knocked out of me, so that was a first,” Dart said postgame. “I quite honestly thought I could split ’em when I saw the open field. I didn’t feel like I was in too much of a threat to get a big hit on me. If you’re gonna take a big hit, then you slide, but I didn’t feel like I was in a situation where I was gonna take a really big hit.”
Dart completed 6-of-12 passes for 81 yards and one touchdown for a passer rating of 99.7.
Across all three preseason games, Dart completed 68.1 percent of his passes, going 32-of-47 for 372 yards, three touchdowns and no interceptions, a rookie performance that’s earned him backup status behind starter Russell Wilson on the depth chart.
There’s still a ways to go for the Ole Miss alum, who will need to navigate the steep learning curve from college to the pros — and the Giants would prefer their future franchise quarterback make healthy decisions along the way.
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