Dan Salomone

Eli Manning isn't the only quarterback who had and will have an influence on Jaxson Dart.

The Utah native was 10 years old when Russell Wilson won Super Bowl XLVIII at MetLife Stadium and, like many fans his age, owned a No. 3 Seahawks jersey. Unlike most kids, however, Dart grew up to be a first-round draft pick.

Now they wear the same uniform.

"I'm stepping into an amazing room with a Super Bowl-winning quarterback who can see it from a different lens at such an elite level," Dart said on draft night after the Giants traded back into the first round to select him No. 25 overall. "I can't wait to go learn from him, go learn from all the other guys in Tommy (DeVito) and Jameis (Winston) in the room and then just the team as a whole. I feel like it's just a bunch of great competitors who really see it the same way, and I can't wait to go out there and compete and do all that I can to make the team better."

With his destination on the radar for months, Dart was asked at the NFL Scouting Combine about how he would handle sitting behind a veteran to start his career. Days earlier, general manager Joe Schoen said he would like to pair a veteran with a young quarterback if they draft one.

"I've never sat on the bench before," Dart said in Indianapolis. "So that would definitely be an adjustment early on, but I don't think that's a bad thing at all. I think it's something that you can go into a situation and learn as much as you can. A lot of times when you're in that situation or playing behind a veteran quarterback who's had a ton of success and just knows a ton about the game. So you've got to be a sponge, and I think that a lot of times you've seen some of the most successful quarterbacks come out of situations like that. You can bring up Patrick Mahomes. As of late, you know, Jordan Love."

Those comments came before the Giants signed not one, but two free agents who fit that bill in Wilson and Winston. After it became a reality, Dart took the same approach.

"It's definitely new," he said, "but for me, this is just where my journey starts."

It will begin with Wilson taking first-team reps when the Giants get on the field for OTAs later this month. The Giants said as much heading into the draft, and coach Brian Daboll reiterated that is the plan in the wake of it.

"Russ will be our starter, and that's how it'll be once we get started here in the spring," Daboll said. "Look, the process of developing a quarterback is just that. So, we're going to do everything we can to develop (Dart) and bring him along. We have some good quarterbacks in the room relative to play time, experience, some medals on the wall, if you will. They've done a great job here these first four days (of the offseason workout program). It's really early, phase one, but the two of those guys that we've added have added a lot of value already to the room in terms of leadership and communication."

And each day No. 10 greets them on the wall as they walk into their position room.

"I'm blessed to be here," said Dart, who broke Manning's career passing yards record at Ole Miss. "I'm humbled by it. It's extraordinary to see it on the wall when you walk by. You can just feel it in the air when you're here."

Only 57,023 yards to go for his Giants record.

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