Giants name Jaxson Dart starting QB: What’s next for Russell Wilson in New York? Identifying new landing spots

Russell Wilson is cooking, no more. The New York Giants pulled the veteran quarterback out of the proverbial kitchen and have named rookie Jaxson Dart their starter going forward. This comes on the heels of Wilson and the Giants falling to 0-3 on the season with their latest loss against the Kansas City Chiefs, seeing the offense muster single-digit points for the second time this season.

Wilson signed a one-year, $10.5 million deal this offseason and was supposed to hold down the fort as Dart, the 25th pick in the 2025 NFL Draft, developed in the shadows. Even amid Dart’s tremendous preseason, Daboll held first with Wilson as the team’s starter. That faith deteriorated quickly with Wilson, who completed 59.1% of his passes and registered a 78.5 passer rating through three weeks (both on pace to be career lows). That was all coach Brian Daboll needed to see to push the eject button on Wilson. So what’s next? 

As noted by CBS Sports NFL insider Jonathan Jones, the immediate future for Wilson with the Giants isn’t clear, but Jones adds that “he could be a trade piece for a quarterback-needy team ahead of the Nov. 4 trade deadline.” 

Let’s explore that possibility, shall we? Below, we’ll identify a couple of landing spots if he were to be dealt and ponder what’s next for the former Super Bowl champion. 

Cincinnati Bengals

This one is pretty obvious, right? The Bengals have lost Joe Burrow for at least the next three months due to a turf toe injury that required surgery. In his place, they’ve installed backup Jake Browning as their starter, and the immediate results left little to be desired. In his first start on Sunday against the Vikings, Browning struggled mightily. He completed 19 of his 27 passes for 140 yards, one touchdown, and two interceptions. The Bengals offense as a whole converted just three of its 11 third-down opportunities in the game and mustered only 10 points. To be fair, Minnesota’s defense is among the best in the league and can give even the best quarterbacks in the NFL fits. That said, it didn’t seem like Browning could come close to elevating the elite skill positions players Cincinnati possesses. If they are intent on staying competitive until Burrow returns to keep their playoff hopes alive, Wilson could be looked at as an upgrade at quarterback.

New Orleans Saints

New Orleans went through the least-exciting quarterback battle this summer, and it felt like Spencer Rattler bested rookie Tyler Shough by default. Fast forward to Week 3, and the Saints are winless on the year, and did see Rattler benched late for Shough in a blowout loss to Seattle. New Orleans is 29th in the NFL in points per game (15.7), tied for the fourth-fewest yards per play (4.4), and tied for the third-fewest yards per pass attempt (5.3). Dating to last season, Rattler is 0-9 as a starter so, despite an uptick in numbers in 2025, he doesn’t seem to be getting the job done. That could open the door for a pursuit of Wilson to make sense, if they want to be a more competitive outfit. 

Retirement

Cards on the table, I tried getting to three possible trade destinations for Wilson and was struggling to find the third. And that brought me to this avenue: Retirement. Maybe there isn’t a next stop for Wilson. After all, his play is deteriorating, he is set to turn 37 in November, and is already on his third team in as many seasons and possibly onto his fourth. Oftentimes, the game tells you when the time has come rather than the other way around, and, after 14 seasons in the league, a Super Bowl title, and 10 Pro Bowls to show for it, the clock may have struck midnight on Wilson.