AT A GLANCE

John Harbaugh made his Giants debut at MetLife Stadium and quarterback Jaxson Dart started the preseason opener and threw a touchdown to rookie wide receiver Malachi Fields. Linebacker Jack Kelly, another 2026 draft pick, led the team in tackles, but the Giants ultimately fell to the Vikings, 13-10.

"First opportunity to see us in a game as opposed to a practice, it was good to see," Harbaugh said. "Going to be a lot of great things to look at and work on, get better at, a lot of great things that we felt good about in the game. It'll be play-by-play, player-by-player evaluation that we'll take on tomorrow. So, proud of the guys, I thought they played hard, thought they competed and we'll learn a lot from that game."

UP NEXT

The Giants travel to Miami for a joint practice with the Dolphins on Thursday ahead of their matchup on Saturday, Aug. 22 (4 p.m.). The Giants will wrap up the preseason against the Jets on Friday, Aug. 28, before the initial 53-man roster must be announced by 6 p.m. that Sunday.

WHAT WE LEARNED ABOUT THE OFFENSE

Starters:

• LT Marcus Mbow

• LG Jon Runyan

• C Bryan Hudson

• RG Francis "Sisi" Mauigoa

• RT Jermaine Eluemunor

• FB Patrick Ricard

• RB Cam Skattebo

• QB Jaxson Dart

• TE Theo Johnson

• WR Darius Slayton

• WR Darnell Mooney

Jaxson Dart and most of the first-team offense started on Saturday. The first play was a handoff to Cam Skattebo, who took it for a four-yard gain in his first game since suffering a serious ankle injury on Oct. 26, 2025. Skattebo finished with four carries for 19 yards.

"I was excited about it because I thought I saw the Cam Skattebo that you guys all know and saw last year," Harbaugh said. "So, I don't know that he's 100% twitchy and explosive yet, but he's getting there. He's come a long way in the last two, three weeks."

"It was great to have him back out there," Dart said. "The energy that he brings; his physicality. His will just all around brings a lot of positive and tough energy into our huddle. So, not only was I happy to have him back out there, but I was just happy for him. I know recoveries of injuries are tough. So, when you have the opportunity to be out there on the field, you take advantage of it, and I thought he did."

Dart's day included three completions on four pass attempts for 26 yards, including a 15-yard touchdown to rookie wide receiver Malachi Fields.

"That was a big thing that I love about Malachi's tape coming out (of college) – was his ability to go make contested catches," Dart said. "I feel like he's a player that regardless of what route that he's on, just from his range and stature and his ability to have really good hands that he's never really out of a play. And he loves the game, he competes through the whistle. You see that in the way that not only he runs his routes but also the way that he blocks, so I think he's just been doing what he's been doing and I have a ton of faith in him."

The score came on the second drive of the game, which included a brief cameo by Jameis Winston to start the second quarter while Dart was evaluated for a concussion after he took a big hit on a sack. The Giants moved into scoring position on a 40-yard catch-and-run by running back Devin Singletary on a pass from Winston, before Dart was cleared and re-entered the game and threw the touchdown.

"They got reps in a game, which they're not going to get until the first game if you don't play them in the preseason," Harbaugh said of playing starters. "It's different. They played their whole starting defense. We played about half our starting defense to start the game. So, I decided not to play some of those starting defensive guys for that reason. I thought that they would benefit more from not playing. They played their whole starting defense. I think we played all of our starting offense, except for our left tackle and I felt like he didn't need it. He would be fine. But felt like the other guys playing together was important, especially with Jaxson out there. And our quarterback got two – got, I don't know, 10, 15 plays out there of good football. So, he's going to be that much better for the regular season that he would have been if he hadn't played those games. And we got out of it healthy. So, it worked."

Fields, a third-round pick out of Notre Dame, caught all three of his targets for 34 yards (11.3 yards per catch), including the score.

Winston took over full-time on the third possession of the game and finished with just one incompletion on nine attempts, for 89 yards.

Bryan Hudson started at center in place of John Michael Schmitz, who is in the concussion protocol.

Wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. entered late in first half to a large cheer from the MetLife Stadium crowd. He went on to catch two passes on three targets for six yards.

Brandon Allen was the third quarterback in and was intercepted by linebacker Jacob Roberts on his first throw midway through the third quarter. Safety Jacob Thomas intercepted him again early in the fourth quarter.

Wide receiver Dalen Cambre had a a big play on a 20-yard reception from Allen late in the game.

WHAT WE LEARNED ABOUT THE DEFENSE

Starters:

• DL Darius Alexander
• DL Josh Tupou
• DL Leki Fotu
• OLB Abdul Carter
• OLB Kayvon Thibodeaux
• LB Micah McFadden
• LB Arvell Reese
• CB Colton Hood
• CB Deonte Banks
• S Ar'Darius Washington
• S Tyler Nubin

Linebacker Arvell Reese, the No. 5 overall pick, and second-round cornerback Colton Hood were among the three rookie starters on Saturday, joining right guard Francis "Sisi" Mauigoa (No. 10 overall pick). Reese had two tackles (one solo), while Hood had three stops (two solo).

Darius Alexander, a second-year defensive lineman who has made his share of plays in training camp, had the Giants' only sack of the game. The former third-round pick had 3.5 sacks in his rookie season.

Rookie linebacker Jack Kelly, a sixth-round pick from BYU, led the team with five total tackles (two solo).

Chauncey Golston, a versatile defender in the front seven, had two quarterback hits and a tackle for loss.

Leki Fotu broke up a pass and nearly had an interception in the third quarter.

The Vikings took the lead late in the third quarter on a one-handed touchdown catch by Myles Price on a one-yard throw from Carson Wentz. The drive was kept alive by two pass interference penalties on cornerbacks Korie Black and Art Green.

WHAT WE LEARNED ABOUT SPECIAL TEAMS

Saturday was the first live test for the new-look kicking battery. Ben Sauls, the only returning Giant in the operation who is competing with Dominic Zvada for the kicking job, handled kickoff and field goal duties (Zvada was slated to handle kicking duties in the second half, but there were no opportunities). With undrafted rookie Ben Mann long snapping to holder/punter Jordan Stout, Sauls made his lone attempt from 46 yards as time expired in the first half, giving the Giants a 10-3 lead. He also made an extra point.

Veteran receiver and returner Braxton Berrios made a nice move on a 15-yard punt return midway through the first quarter.

Stout, a first-team All-Pro for the Ravens last season, downed three of his six punts inside the 20 with a long of 60 yards.

GAME CAPTAINS

QB Jaxson Dart, P Jordan Stout and OLB Kayvon Thibodeaux represented the Giants for the pregame coin toss.