New York Giants quarterback Jaxson Dart labeled the Minnesota Vikings’ swarming defense as “chaos,” leading up to their Week 16 meeting at MetLife Stadium. On Sunday afternoon, he lived it.
Big Blue’s rookie quarterback was held to his worst outing yet as a pro, completing 7 of 13 passes for 33 yards and an interception in the Giants’ 16-13 loss to the Minnesota Vikings.
New York (2-13) has now lost nine straight games, with its hold on the No. 1 overall pick at the 2026 NFL Draft strengthening with every pitiful effort that builds under interim head coach Mike Kafka, who continues to see his hopes of landing a full-time head-coaching gig go up in smoke.
“As he learns and sees more of these [defenses], the ability to get the ball out a touch faster, use some of those sights, keep the mind clear [will come],” Kafka said of Dart. “That put him in a bad spot. I thought he had some opportunities downfield at times… that’s part of the growth process.”
Kafka, the former offensive coordinator and once considered one of the brighter young coaching minds in the game, had no answers to counter Minnesota’s defense. Dart completed just one of five passes for two yards in the first half, and that first connection did not come until there was 1:44 remaining in the second quarter.
“I felt great about the plan and what we were expecting there,” Kafka said of his offense’s preparations for the Vikings. “We just have to look back at it and see what we’ve done better.’
He had little help from his receivers throughout the afternoon, though. Trailing 6-3 with 3:59 left in the second, tight end Theo Johnson let a high pass go right through his hands, which then landed in the clutches of Vikings defensive back Byron Murphy, who returned it to New York’s 16-yard line.
Vikings quarterback JJ McCarthy’s 12-yard touchdown scramble put the visitors up 13-3 with 2:01 to go, which appeared to kill off any Giants hope, considering just three minutes earlier, Jevon Holland’s 97-yard pick-six was called back because rookie edge rusher Abdul Carter lined up in the neutral zone.
Still, had it not been for the Giants’ defense, the Vikings (7-8) would likely have cruised to a much simpler victory. With 17 seconds left in the half, a puzzling Minnesota decision to call for a pass play allowed Big Blue’s star edge rusher, Brian Burns, an unevaded rush at McCarthy. He strip-sacked the quarterback, and defensive back Tyler Nubin returned in 27 yards for a touchdown to cut the Giants’ halftime deficit to just three.
Burns’ hit further exacerbated a right-hand injury suffered by McCarthy, and the Michigan product’s day was done at the break.
His backup, Max Brosmer, did not have to do much. Two ineffective offenses traded field goals in the fourth quarter before Dart was sacked on a 4th-&-3 at the Giants’ 39-yard line with 2:05 to go to end it. Veteran receiver Darius Slayton had a key drop moments before that would have moved New York to the doorstep of Minnesota territory.
