The New York Giants are embarking on a new era with John Harbaugh as their head coach, taking over a team that has had 10 losing seasons in the past 12 years.
One of the aspects that drew Harbaugh, who had a .609 winning percentage over 18 seasons with the Baltimore Ravens, to the job was all the young talent the Giants have amassed over the past few years, most particularly quarterback Jaxson Dart.
In a recent interview with Giants radio broadcasters Bob Papa and Carl Banks, Harbaugh was asked if he was surprised by anything he’s seen in Dart thus far.
“I don’t know about surprised, probably just impressed, probably more than anything. I do think he’s obsessed. I believe that he really, really wants to be good. He’s kind of got the it factor from a leadership standpoint because he’s respected by the guys,” Harbaugh said. “I mean, they just know how hard he works, and they know how much he cares, and they respect his talent, of course. He’s got a little juice, you know, he’s got some charisma.”
One feat, where Dart throws a dime off a boat to a friend on a jet ski on Lake Powell, caught Harbaugh’s eye this summer.
“When I saw him throw the dart to the jet skier off the yacht, you know, I mean, I was impressed by the yacht. I thought it was pretty nice,” the coach said. “You know, the surroundings looked amazing. It’s like, dude, where are you? Like, I mean, I don’t even know. But more than anything, I just was happy they threw a dime out there on the deal. It was a very accurate throw. So, you know, he’s a talented guy.”
Harbaugh is also impressed by Dart’s dedication to his craft at such a young age. It’s a trait that all of the game’s great quarterbacks possess.
“He really cares about football,” Harbaugh said. “So, for him to be this young, have that kind of mindset. I don’t know if it surprises me because I think that the guys that have a chance to be great, I feel like the Bradys of the world, the Mannings of the world, you know, they, they were always like that probably from the beginning.
“I don’t think they had to learn that. They kind of had it probably maybe from high school on. And I kind of see that in Jaxson Dart. Now we’ll see what he does with it. You know, we’ll see, you know, we’ll see, like all of us, we’ll see how good we are. We’ll find out.”
Still, football is a team game. Great quarterbacks can only take you so far. Harbaugh has plenty of work to do to get this team back on track, but having a potential franchise quarterback in the fold is a great start.
“If we have what it takes. That’s to be proven. You have to prove that,” he said. “But I really am impressed by how much he cares.”
This article originally appeared on Giants Wire: New York Giants’ John Harbaugh has been ‘impressed’ with QB Jaxson Dart
Reporting by John Fennelly, Giants Wire / Giants Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By John Fennelly, Giants Wire | USA TODAY Network
