Giants QB Jaxson Dart: These 'diamonds' are forever because they belong to my sister
Giants quarterback Jaxson Dart reacts after losing to the New England Patriots at Gillette Stadium on Dec. 1 in Foxborough, Massachusetts. Credit: Getty Images/Maddie Meyer
Being an NFL quarterback in New York opens one up to plenty of criticism. Jaxson Dart hasn’t escaped any of it so far in his rookie season. He’s heard comments and complaints about everything from his interceptions and fumbles to his running style — lots and lots about his running style — to the eyeblack he applies for every game. It comes with the job, and he understands that.
But disparaging the glittering necklace he wears prominently each time he takes the field? That he can’t abide.
“Maybe they should do their research instead of just talking about something,” an angry Dart told Newsday on Wednesday in regard to the bling backlash that seemed to become a bigger talking point after the primetime Monday Night Football loss to the Patriots a week and a half ago. “It’s definitely funny to see people talk about it like they know exactly what is going on. If you are going to talk about it, at least do a little bit of research.”
Dart defended his jewelry because it’s not just decoration. It’s a connection he shares with his 13-year-old sister, Stella, who often watches his games from back home in Utah and looks for the shimmers under the lights.
It’s her necklace.
At least it was until Jaxson the Jewel Thief swiped it. That was about a year ago, just after Christmas, when Dart was leaving home to return to his team at Ole Miss and get ready to play in the Gator Bowl against Duke. As he headed out the door for the airport he saw it sitting on the table, was drawn to the heart-shaped stones, and grabbed it.
He wore it in that last game as a college player, a 52-30 victory in which he threw for 404 yards and four touchdowns. He’s worn it on important days ever since, too.
“I sent her a little text saying sorry I took it,” he said. “Had to buy her a new one.”
So now there are two. A matching set.
“Really it just signifies the relationship I have with my sister,” he told Newsday. “She likes it and she has a lot of fun being able to watch the game and see her big brother wear it. She dances, she is super busy, so it’s not like she can get to every game. That’s the biggest thing.”
Dart has been wearing it all season. He wore it the day the Giants drafted him in April. He wore it to rookie minicamp in May. And he’s told the story about its provenance several times, which is why he gets miffed when people still think it’s a symbol of his arrogance or a sign that he is a look-at-me showoff. He conceded it was a bit of flashy swag at first, but it has morphed into something more.
They are not real diamonds, but they have survived the rigors of this NFL season as if they were the hardest material on earth. That’s more than can be said of Dart himself, who missed two games with a concussion. But often after he takes a hit or heads to the sideline after a drive he instinctively clutches under his chin to make sure the necklace is still there, still straight.
Not everyone knows the reason behind the necklace, even among his teammates. Backup quarterback Jameis Winston made an appearance on the Fox pregame show on Sunday when the Giants had a bye and Terry Bradshaw peppered Winston with questions about the look. Winston defended Dart on the air but on Wednesday, back in the Giants’ locker room, he conceded he did not know why the necklace meant so much to Dart.
Now he does.
“Those old-school guys don’t like that look,” Winston told Newsday of Bradshaw’s reaction, quickly adding that Bradshaw and his four Super Bowl wins give him permission to say what he wants. You want to diss a necklace, you need the rings to do so.
There were plenty of other haters and critics of the look on social media and other venues who hadn’t won anything, though.
Maybe it was the large national TV audience that night, the lights of the night game flashing off the stones, or the fact that Dart wore the piece outside the white garment he had on to keep himself warm in New England so it couldn’t be tucked in under his jersey that really made the piece pop . . . and pop up in conversations.
Dart will be on the field on Sunday against the Commanders at MetLife Stadium. And yes, he’ll be wearing the necklace proudly. It’s become one of the signature parts of his look, a good luck charm (although the Giants’ 2-11 record this season makes it seem like less of a talisman each game), and he has come to bestow upon the shape of the stones a deeper meaning about love in a world where that can be in short supply.
“It’s kind of like the emoji of a heart, bringing people together and kind of spreading joy and love to all,” he said.
But to him it’s still a way to connect with his sister.
“It’s important to her,” he said. “I do it because my sister loves it and she has a lot of fun watching the TV and feeling like she is involved. It’s a fun relationship thing that we have. I definitely care a lot about it. And that’s the biggest reason why I wear it.”
Tom Rock began covering sports for Newsday in 1996 and became its NFL columnist in 2022. He previously was Newsday's Giants beat writer beginning in 2008.
