Giants edge rusher Abdul Carter officially cleared the air Friday about his since-deleted tweet criticizing New York quarterback Jaxson Dart for introducing President Donald Trump at a political event earlier this month.
Talking after Friday's OTA practice, Carter wasn't apologetic for what he said. However, he made it clear it hasn't affected his relationship with Dart.
"First off, I'm going to say that some things are bigger than football, and this is one of those things. Jaxson is one of our leaders.
He's the face of our franchise. He not only represents himself and what he does, but he represents all of us, and that goes for anybody who wears a Giants uniform," Carter said.
"But if he chooses to align himself with a man like President Trump, it's my responsibility based on what I believe and what I stand on to not only show my teammates that I'm against that, but to show the world.
"That doesn't mean that we have to spread hate. It doesn't mean that me and Jaxson hate each other or we have beef. I sit next to Jaxson every day, every team meeting. We're close. We talk. As long as we make sure we've got the same goal as a team and our goals align, which they do, I feel like that's all that matters. I just want to move past this."
Dart introduced Trump last week at festivities supporting the campaign of Rep. Mike Lawler, who represents New York's Hudson Valley in Congress and is running for a third term.
Dart's presence and on-the-mic role at the rally sparked a reaction from Carter, the third overall draft pick in 2025 - the same year in which the Giants selected Dart with the 25th pick.
"Thought this (s-) was AI," Carter wrote in a since-deleted post on X that showed the video featuring Dart's introduction of the president. "What we doing, man?"
Dart, who also talked to the media on Friday, opened with a statement which shared his side of the story.
"This was a unique opportunity, being asked and given the opportunity to introduce the President of the United States," Dart said. "My thinking was pretty simple, in the fact of, I've always loved this country. I have extended family members who have fought in wars. I have two uncles who have retired from the Air Force Academy and served themselves. And I even have a great-grandfather who served as the Secretary of the Treasury at some point.
"The president position has always been a position that I have a lot of respect in, regardless of political affiliation, regardless of political party. My intentions were just that."
Dart added that some productive conversations amongst Giants players have come out of this situation.
"We have a real brotherhood. We've had a lot of honest conversations with each other, as a team, and I'd like to keep those things private between me and my teammates."
Carter, who was seen embracing Dart during Friday's workout, made it clear he isn't looking for Dart to apologize.
"I don't want him to say he's sorry. Stand on what you believe in," Carter said. "But it can't be a problem when I stand on what I believe in. That's all that matters to me. As long as we have that understanding, it's all good."
Backup quarterback Jameis Winston, a 12-year NFL veteran, shared his veteran perspective as for how valuable it can be for two guys entering their second seasons to come out the other side of something like this.
"I think these two young guys being resilient and showing that uncomfortable situations and coming to a, not a compromise, but coming to a position of strength, of authority, of the impact that they have, that we have as athletes with this platform to the world, is so good for them to experience," Winston said.
"Because guys, they were drafted together. You don't have a tighter bond than that. They sit next to each other in the team meeting room. That's what we see in this world. Sometimes we try to normalize just opinions, people's opinions. Everybody wants to jump on, oh, he said this, she did that, but we don't normalize togetherness. We don't normalize perspective. Everyone has that."
--Field Level Media
