Jaxson Dart going down is the absolute last thing that the New York Giants need. After the good vibes were flowing following a season-opening win over the rival Cowboys, they came to an abrupt halt on Monday Night Football against the Rams after an awkward hit. He hobbled off the field and was initially listed as questionable with a knee injury, leaving the blue medical tent and heading directly to the locker room. Though it was a positive sign to see him walk to the back under his own power. But he was eventually carted out of the locker room for further evaluation.
But even with veteran Jameis Winston as the backup, John Harbaugh's Giants losing Dart is a blow that's tough to weather. Yes, they have experience in the quarterback room, but Winston isn't getting any younger. They also have Jake Haener on the practice squad, but if Dart misses any significant time, then New York needs to make a trade. And as fate would have it, trading with the New Orleans Saints, the team that Haener was with previously, might be one of their best options as they could go after Spencer Rattler.
Emergency Giants-Saints trade for Spencer Rattler after Dart's knee injury
Rattler got his opportunity in New Orleans previously with plenty of ups and downs, but was obviously not valuable enough for the Saints to continue rolling with as they drafted Tyler Shough. But Shough has looked like the absolute goods since he took over last season, which puts the Saints — especially with the depth on their roster — in an advantageous position. Meanwhile, the Giants could be looking to get either someone to compete with Winston or someone who's at least mildly competent at quarterback to have behind Winston as depth.
A fifth-round pick in 2027 while the Giants get back a 2028 seventh-round pick (New Olrleans doesn't have their own, but does have two via the Cowboys and Patriots from trades), seems like a fair price to pay for such a trade. That's especially true given that New York is going to be a bit desperate to add someone like Rattler to the quarterback room given Dart's injury.
Why the Giants would trade for Spencer Rattler
Rattler is the perfect quarterback for the Giants to look to add in an emergency situation like this. He's not someone that would threaten Dart as the future quarterback for New York, might be at least close to Winston's level of performance at this stage of his career, and won't break the bank in a season that might as well be considered lost without Dart, though there's still plenty reason to keep pushing forward hard under a new coaching regime.
Now, let's not get it twisted — Rattler hasn't been particularly impressive in his career. He has a 1-13 record as a starter with the Saints. but in the 2025 season, he was passable and showed improvement, completing 67.7% of his attempts for 1,586 yards, eight touchdowns and five interceptions. He has never really pushed the ball down the field and takes too many sacks, but there is still upside with the 25-year-old.
But again, the Giants have a good backup. They don't need to make an emergency trade for a player like Mac Jones that is a higher-priced but obviously better option than Rattler. New York will need someone who can be quality depth for them behind Winston and potentially get some looks to see if there's a role for him in the future. He checks those boxes rightly, especially in a cost-effective manner.
Why the Saints would make this trade
If you're just now learning that Zach Wilson is now on the Saints, you're probably not alone. By no means has he earned another opportunity to start in the NFL again. However, the former No. 2 overall pick can still be a fine backup in the league, which is why New Orleans could be willing to move on from Rattler in a deal like this. They have an option behind Shough that can still work — or to say that another way, they have the depth to move a quarterback in a trade.
That's not to say that the Saints prefer Wilson to Rattler. That's quite clearly not the case considering that they have Wilson listed as QB3 on the depth chart as of Week 2. However, if the organization is able to pull back and see the bigger picture, taking advantage of a team in the Giants' position via trade would ultimately help the franchise be better off in the long term.
With Shough in the fold, the Saints' future is now looking quite bright. At the same time, though, this is still a roster that feels incomplete for that long haul. Even if it's just a fifth-round pick, that's more ammo for New Orleans when they don't have a seventh-round pick in the loaded 2027 draft to be able to maneuver around the board, or even make a trade at this year's deadline.
Put simply, that flexibility is probably more valuable to them than Rattler at this point, as he and Wilson as backups might be pretty close to a wash.
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