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For a team that finished 10-7 and still called it ‘progress,’ the Pittsburgh Steelers last season managed to redefine what football frustration looks like. The offense? Stalled. The rhythm? Nonexistent. And the quarterback? Russell Wilson – posting one decent half per game, followed by two quarters of sleepwalking. The fans weren’t just annoyed – they were practically begging Mike Tomlin to bench Wilson and hand the reins to Justin Fields. Tomlin’s answer? Classic loyalty over logic. “Not really, no,” he said when asked if Fields was even considered. “Our failures were collective…the most prudent thing for us to do was stick with those that were on the field and work through it.”

And now? Brian Daboll and the New York Giants are sitting on that very same Russell Wilson grenade – except this time, they’re keeping a finger on the safety pin. Unlike Tomlin, Daboll may not be interested in riding the Russell Redemption Train off a cliff. On the Pat O’Keefe Show on ESPN New York, insider Jordan Raanan made it clear: Russell’s the starter until he’s not. “You honestly wanna see what your offense looks like with Russell Wilson, right?” Raanan said. “He’s gonna be the starter until he’s not good enough to be their starter anymore. Or until they need to put in Jaxson Dart right? Or he is injured or whatever it may be.” That wasn’t a throwaway line. That is a blueprint.

Even Pro Football Focus noted Wilson will “pave the way” for Dart – it’s just a matter of when. And Ian Rapoport recently doubled down on The Insiders: “It’s clearly a matter of when, not if,” Rapoport said, calling Dart’s rise inevitable. Translation? Wilson’s leash is shorter than ever. And the Giants don’t want to repeat Pittsburgh’s mistake.

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The Giants have already drawn up a scenario where Russell Wilson is benched this season – and it’s not some distant, hypothetical fallback. It’s a plan. The moment things get rocky, Jaxson Dart isn’t just the future – he’s the now. The 22-year-old rookie out of Ole Miss has already flashed enough potential to keep the pressure high. His 4,276 passing yards and 29 touchdowns in college weren’t empty stats. They were a warning shot. And if Russell starts slow, Dart will be more than ready to fire.

Around the Giants’ facility, the vibe is shifting. Rookies report this week. Full camp kicks off soon. And inside MetLife Stadium, there’s a growing belief that Wilson is simply the bridge – and the future is getting impatient. While the depth chart still says Wilson is QB1, the buzz around Dart hasn’t faded for a second. Because the Russell Wilson experiment was never Brian Daboll’s idea.

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How Daboll got dragged into the Russell Wilson rebuild

When the offseason started, New York had a decent bridge quarterback in Jameis Winston. They had their rookie in Jaxson Dart. The plan was in motion. Then came the front office’s late-night epiphany: What if we saved Russell Wilson? And just like that, Daboll tried to sell the whole Wilson plan. At the league meetings, Daboll listed off Wilson’s traits like a man clinging to a Costco receipt. “Makes good decisions…phenomenal deep ball thrower,” he said, clearly forcing the positives. But beneath the surface, he knows what the rest of the league does: Russ isn’t 2013 Russ anymore. Not even close.

And now the blowback is starting. Bleacher Report recently called Wilson the Giants’ biggest potential bust of 2025. They labeled the contract a desperation move. Said the Giants were “bidding against themselves.” And worse? They argued Daboll will be left to clean up the mess once Wilson inevitably falters. That’s the pressure cooker Daboll’s working with – juggling a rookie, a legacy name, and a fanbase that’s already losing patience.

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What’s your perspective on:

Is Russell Wilson just a bridge for the Giants, or can he still lead them to glory?

Have an interesting take?

Meanwhile, the Jameis Winston trade window is slamming shut. Initially signed as a savvy backup for two years, Winston is now more of an insurance policy than trade bait. Dan Duggan of The Athletic made that crystal clear, noting Winston “doesn’t have much trade value” and may be more vital to Daboll’s fallback plan than anyone wants to admit. If Dart’s not ready or Wilson’s wheels fall off, guess who’s next up? So the real battle won’t be on the scoreboard. It’ll be on the sideline – every incomplete pass inching him closer to the bench.

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"Is Russell Wilson just a bridge for the Giants, or can he still lead them to glory?"

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