Jaxson Dart told Giants teammates he’d addressed concerns after introducing President Donald Trump at a Suffern, New York rally—an appearance that drew public criticism from rookie Abdul Carter and quickly spread online.
When Jaxson Dart walked into the Giants’ OTA practice session on May 27, it wasn’t just another day of drills. It was the day after a campaign-style rally appearance with President Donald Trump, and the conversation that followed didn’t stay on the internet.
Dart addressed his teammates about his introduction of Trump at the May 22 rally for Republican Rep. Mike Lawler in Suffern, New York, according to NFL Media’s Ian Rapoport and Mike Garafolo. The meeting took place on May 27, the first day of the second session of Giants OTA practices. The team did not publicly disclose what Dart said. but the moment was clearly about repairing the damage—if only enough to move forward.
Rapoport reported that team leaders including Brian Burns, Kayvon Thibodeaux and Jameis Winston spoke at the gathering along with Dart. Garafolo later wrote that the players “worked through” the disharmony during the meeting. “They are moving forward,” Garafolo wrote in a social media post.
The rally itself is what set the whole chain in motion. Dart. a 23-year-old quarterback. gave a brief speech on May 22. led the crowd in a “Go Big Blue!” Giants chant. and then shared a handshake and hug with Trump before leaving the stage. Trump praised Dart in sweeping terms. calling him a “future Hall of Famer” and a “beautiful guy” with “legs like tree trunks.” Trump also brought Dart into his remarks about policy goals. including his desire to ban transgender athletes from competing in women’s sports.
At one point during the rally. Trump said: “I’m looking at Jaxson.” He added. “I’d like to know. is there any woman in the audience that thinks they can tackle that guy?. Because I’d like to meet you. I’d like to shake your hand. I don’t know. Jaxson, you think you can play against women OK?” Trump then told Dart: “Don’t get involved Jaxson. Don’t answer that question.”.
Back in the Giants’ locker-room world, the fallout surfaced almost immediately—first as anger, then as viral noise. Dart’s appearance drew the ire of teammate and fellow 2025 first-round pick Abdul Carter, who questioned Dart’s decision to attend the event in a since-deleted post on X on May 23.
“Thought this (expletive) was AI,” Carter wrote in a May 23 social media repost of Dart’s introduction. “What we doing man.” Carter’s message spread fast, aided by the viral video of Dart’s appearance at the rally.
The criticism didn’t end there. After the online uproar, Carter posted a follow-up saying he and Dart had spoken and were fine. In an X post that has since been deleted, Carter wrote: “Me & JD6 are good!. We spoke earlier as Men. Yall can keep yall narratives,” and identified Dart by his initials and jersey number. Dart did not respond to either of Carter’s social media posts and has yet to publicly comment on his introduction of Trump.
The sequence—from rally to teammate backlash to an OTA meeting—shows how quickly off-field appearances can become a team issue once they land inside a group that has to keep working together. On May 27. the Giants chose to address that disruption directly. with leaders present and a clear push toward closing the loop.
Where the situation stands now is simple. at least in the day-to-day sense: after the May 27 gathering. players “worked through” the disharmony and “are moving forward.” Whether the public controversy fades—or returns—remains tied to what happens next. and whether Dart ever explains what he thought he was stepping into when he shook hands and hugged the president on May 22.
Jaxson Dart New York Giants Donald Trump OTA practices Abdul Carter Brian Burns Kayvon Thibodeaux Jameis Winston Mike Lawler NFL Media Ian Rapoport Mike Garafolo