Joe Schoen dismisses idea Giants coaches pushed Jaxson Dart pick after curious NFL draft comments

Joe Schoen dismisses idea Giants coaches pushed Jaxson Dart pick after curious NFL draft comments

Joe Schoen didn’t steal cornerback Deonte Banks’ signature “My guy” catchphrase when talking about the Giants’ decision to draft Jaxson Dart.

The general manager refuted the idea that Dart was a coaching-staff-driven pick Thursday during his appearance on FanDuel TV’s “Up and Adams.” But he didn’t claim Dart as his favorite, either.

“It was an organizational decision,” Schoen said. “Any player that we take, it’s a collaborative process and it’s very detailed, and we believe in it.”

Giants head coach Brian Daboll (l.) and QB Jaxson Dart (r.) during rookie camp on May 10, 2025. Robert Sabo for NY Post
Jaxson Dart speaks to reporters during Giants rookie camp on May 9, 2025. Corey Sipkin for the NY POST

A perception exists in NFL personnel circles that the Giants’ front office preferred Shedeur Sanders — after spending more time with him than any other team spent with any prospect in 2025 — but that Daboll and the coaching staff interjected with a preference for Dart.

More fuel to the fire was added when the Giants released an in-house video production with behind-the-scenes footage of the war room on draft night. Schoen turned to Daboll and said, “You guys are convicted in him. You believe in him.”

So, is he Daboll’s guy? Schoen’s guy? The Giants’ guy?

“Jaxson is a guy that was on the radar throughout the fall,” said Schoen, who scouted Dart’s final college game in-person.

“Three coaches on staff (Daboll, offensive coordinator Mike Kafka and quarterbacks coach Shea Tierney) that have been part of the development of two pretty good quarterbacks in the league right now (Patrick Mahomes and Josh Allen), and when they are convicted on a player and the scouting staff is convicted on a player, typically you have the best chance for success in those situations.”

Schoen said the Giants decided three days before the draft to hone in on Dart.

Sanders, who some Giants’ evaluators preferred to Dart, surprisingly slipped to the fifth round to the Browns.

“As the draft gets closer, you really start to narrow your circle and you want to eliminate outside voices,” Schoen said. “My leadership group, along with a couple of the coaches, and that’s when we really started to devise a plan.”

Giants GM Joe Schoen on “Up & Adams” on May 15, 2025. X/Up & Adams

Here are some other takeaways from Schoen’s appearance:

— Free-agent WR Gabe Davis dined with Schoen on Wednesday night after visiting the facility. Schoen was part of drafting Davis to the Bills as a 2020 fourth-rounder, but Davis was just cut by the Jaguars and is coming off a season-ending knee injury.

“We’ll see if anything transpires here down the road,” Schoen said. “There will be no announcements today.”

— The Giants face a Murderer’s Row first four games of the season: At the Commanders, at the Cowboys, home for the Chiefs and home for the Chargers.

“You want to get off to a fast start,” Schoen said. “That’s something we did in 2022 and haven’t the last two years.”

Does he embrace having the toughest schedule (by opponents’ winning percentage in 2024) in the NFL?

“There’s nothing we can do about it,” Schoen said matter-of-factly.

— There is a lot of speculation about implementing an NFL draft lottery to curb late-season tanking talk.

“I would not be in favor of that,” said Schoen, who has made four top-seven picks in his four drafts. “If you’re in that position, you’ve probably earned the right to get one of those players that can potentially turn the luck around for a franchise for 15-20 years.”

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