New York Giants defensive player Abdul Carter spoke openly Friday about his previously deleted social media post that criticized teammate Jaxson Dart for his role introducing President Donald Trump at a campaign event this month.
Following Friday’s practice session, Carter expressed no regret for his original comments while emphasizing that the incident hasn’t damaged his friendship 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.”
The controversy began when Dart appeared at a campaign event supporting Rep. Mike Lawler, who represents New York’s Hudson Valley in Congress and is seeking a third term. Dart served as the person introducing Trump at the rally.
Carter, who was the third overall selection in the 2025 draft, reacted to video of Dart’s appearance with a now-deleted social media post. Both players were drafted by the Giants in the same year, with Dart chosen 25th overall.
“Thought this (s-) was AI,” Carter wrote in his deleted post on X, which included the video of Dart’s presidential introduction. “What we doing, man?”
When Dart addressed reporters Friday, he began by explaining his decision to participate in the political event.
“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.”
According to Dart, the situation has led to meaningful discussions among Giants teammates.
“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 observed embracing Dart during Friday’s practice, stated he doesn’t expect an apology from his teammate.
“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.”
Veteran backup quarterback Jameis Winston, who has 12 years of NFL experience, offered his perspective on how the two second-year players have handled the situation.
“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.”
