With the preseason opener approaching, New York Giants head coach Brian Daboll and rookie first-round picks Abdul Carter and Jaxson Dart spoke to reporters about their preparations for their first NFL games.
Abdul Carter, a 21-year-old outside linebacker and the team’s No. 3 overall pick, has made an impression during practices since rookie minicamp. He discussed his anticipation for finally playing in a live game after seven months away from football. “I’m excited for sure,” Carter said. “Definitely a good opportunity for me to get my routine down, like coming into a football game. My last game was, shoot, six months ago, something like that. So, it’s cool to come out here, get a routine down, play football again. I’m excited.”
Carter also noted that he is looking forward to being able to finish plays on the field: “That’s going to be fun, just playing in the preseason and get to take guys to the ground, actually sack the quarterback,” said Carter. “So, I look forward to that.”
Head coach Brian Daboll did not reveal which players will see action against the Buffalo Bills but confirmed that rookie quarterback Jaxson Dart will make his debut on Saturday. Given the team’s depth at quarterback with Russell Wilson and Jameis Winston on the roster—both of whom bring significant experience—Dart may have limited opportunities once regular season play begins.
Dart expressed excitement about making his first appearance: “This is just the start of a dream of mine so I’m excited to take that next step, be out there, compete at the highest level,” Dart said. “My family’s going to be there so I’m super excited to have them a part of this journey with me and yeah, I think that’s really it. I’m just stoked for the opportunity…”
He added: “I’m definitely going to be playing out there so (I’m) just going to take advantage of my reps and my opportunity.”
Assistant head coach/offensive coordinator Mike Kafka emphasized he wants Dart focused on running the offense freely during his debut. Dart acknowledged that mistakes are likely but intends to approach every play with full effort: “I’m just focused on being prepared,” he said. “Obviously, I’m going to go out there on the field and compete at my highest level and I’m going to play as hard as I can and I’m going to do good things and I’m going to make mistakes too and I understand that. I’m not going to be perfect when I step out there on that field but I think my mindset is just competing at the highest level, doing what I can to make this offense operate at the highest level and get these chances for the coaches to learn how I play the game…”
“I don’t feel like I need to go out there and think to myself, ‘I need to prove this. I need to prove that.’ I want to kind of just be in my game… How am I going to put our team in the best situation to win?”
To help rookies manage nerves before their debuts, Daboll organized a meeting where several veteran players shared advice based on their own experiences entering their first NFL games.
“I had a meeting with those guys two days ago and had a number of vets talk to them about their first game that they played in,” Daboll said. “A variety of people – maybe a guy in the second year, a guy that’s played a long time, they gave them good messaging… And they all delivered good messages…”
Veterans who spoke included quarterback Russell Wilson; defensive lineman Dexter Lawrence; outside linebacker Brian Burns; and wide receiver Malik Nabers.
“The main point was football is football,” said Dart. “…At the end of the day it’s the same game you were playing when you were a kid so just enjoy that…”
“They all came in and talked… telling them about their preseason experience… So we just took from them and tried apply it…” Carter added.
