The Giants’ Jaxson Dart doesn’t need to face an inquisition over his respect for Trump — he just needs to win

Remember Harrison Butker’s commencement speech heard around the world?

Back in May of 2024, the Kansas City Chiefs’ kicker delivered a commencement address at Benedictine, a Catholic college, praising very traditional ideas about marriage, family and motherhood.

Once it hit X, the speech set off a firestorm — particularly within sports media, with many blasting his words as sexist and anti-gay.

Shortly after, his teammates Travis Kelce and Patrick Mahomes were asked about the controversy. Both offered refreshing answers, essentially saying that, while they didn’t agree with parts of the speech, they respected Butker as a man and a teammate.

After years of stifling groupthink in the sports world, it felt like a much needed return to normalcy — an acknowledgement that people’s political opinions don’t dictate their character. And while teammates may be in lockstep on the field, the locker room is a place with diverse viewpoints.

It was, however, a fleeting moment of sanity.

In February, the gold-medal-winning US men’s hockey team was excoriated for daring to take a call and accept a White House invite from President Trump.

And last Friday, Giants quarterback Jaxson Dart stepped into the progressive media wood chipper when he introduced Trump at a New York State rally — saying, “What an honor, what a privilege it is to be here.”

Pretty standard stuff. But people went absolutely nuts over it.

Fellow Giant Abdul Carter even violated an unwritten rule in team sports: He took his gripe public, writing on X that he “thought this sh!t was AI” and questioned “what we doing man.” 

Carter later deleted that and said he and his signal caller were good: “We spoke earlier as men. Y’all can keep y’all narratives.”

But that wasn’t enough for — checks notes — Sunny Hostin, who ranted about it on the “The View,” saying Dart’s simple introduction “feels personal” because well, to her, everything is about her.

Her white co-host Joy Behar, who might not realize that Dart has been part of racially diverse rosters for years, called his Trump association “the definition of stupidity and racism” because he plays with a majority of black athletes.

Have these women watched a down of football, ever?

Like raccoons raiding a trash can, people went through Dart’s social media likes and found, to the shock of no one, that a Mormon kid who played at Ole Miss follows President Trump on Instagram and even liked a few of his posts.

Most hurt was Dan Le Batard, who wanted Dart to suffer for not subscribing to his personal set of beliefs — you know, the only ones allowed. The podcast host urged the New York media to put the screws to Dart.

“I want him put in a position [by the New York media] to sound educated or uneducated with the decision,” he said. “He deserves to be made uncomfortable if he’s going to support this particular presidency during a deeply uncomfortable time.”

Le Batard talks a tough game, yet, when he was the first person to interview Doug Emhoff after Kamala Harris’ husband was accused by an ex- girlfriend of slapping her, he didn’t even broach the subject. (Emhoff previously denied the accusation through a spokesperson.)

He also admitted he didn’t want to give “oxygen” to the biggest offseason story in the NFL: the Mike Vrabel and Dianna Russini controversy. He felt “uncomfortable” because Russini is a friend.

La Batard wants everyone he agrees with to be cool and comfy. But those who dare like Trump should be sent to a social gulag for re-education until they embrace the approved political messaging. Ideological purity must be achieved.

I’m not enamored with athletes or celebs lecturing us regular schlubs on politics. However, Dart simply introduced the president. No lectures, no talking down to. It felt no different than when Giants rookie Francis “Sisi” Mauigoa declared in a video that, if he could have any celebrity his first NFL game, he’d choose Barack Obama.

But there continues to be a disturbing disconnect between some in the media and the real world. They cannot possibly conceive that someone could hold different views; they cannot fathom that they are the problem.

Meanwhile, in a Giants meeting today, the team reportedly agreed to keep any strife in house from here on out.  

And Dart? He doesn’t need to study the world according to Le Batard. He needs to study the playbook and win.