Angry New York Giants supporters have turned their frustration toward Donald Trump after quarterback Jaxson Dart suffered a season-ending knee injury.
Dart, 23, was ruled out for the rest of the regular NFL season on Wednesday after sustaining damage to his left MCL, PCL and meniscus several days earlier.
Giants head coach John Harbaugh confirmed that the team believes surgery offers Dart the best chance of making “a full recovery.”
As fans absorbed the setback, some took aim at the US president, joking that Trump was somehow responsible for the young quarterback’s devastating injury.
Dart and Trump became linked in an offseason storyline after the Giants quarterback introduced the president at a Republican rally in Suffern, New York, on May 22.
At the event, Trump praised Dart’s physique, saying: “I’m looking at Jaxson… I’m looking at the legs there. He’s this beautiful guy. He’s got legs like tree trunks.”
New York Giants fans have blamed Donald Trump over Jaxson Dart’s season-ending injury
Dart and Trump had developed into an offseason storyline after the young Giants quarterback introduced the President at a Republican rally in Suffern, New York on May 22
Following news of Dart’s injury, video of Trump complimenting the quarterback’s legs resurfaced online. Some fans responded by invoking what they called the “Trump Curse.”
One supporter posted a photo of Trump and Dart from the rally on X on Wednesday evening, writing: “This was the moment I decided not to draft Dart in fantasy football. He had no chance this season after the Trump Curse.”
Another fan echoed the joke, posting: “When Giants fans want to find a reason why this happened to them. Remember Jaxson Dart did this. The TRUMP CURSE IS REAL.”
Trump had only added to the attention surrounding Dart last month when he named the underdog Giants among his three Super Bowl contenders, largely because of his admiration for the young quarterback.
“I’ll pick a few. I think New England looks good,” Trump said. “I think the Giants. I like their quarterback a lot.
“I think that they say the LA Rams are looking very strong, but I better not get into this too much. I’m gonna get myself in trouble if I do.
“I think you have a lot of good teams. A lot of great teams and we’ll see how it turns out. I’ll be watching.”
Dart’s appearance at the Trump rally also sparked tension inside the Giants’ locker room. Defensive standout Abdul Carter appeared to criticize the quarterback in a since-deleted X post, writing: “Thought this s*** was AI, what we doing man.”
The two players later discussed the dispute during OTAs in May. Neither completely backed down or accepted blame, but both maintained that their political differences would not affect the Giants’ locker room.
Jaxson Dart and the Giants have decided that knee surgery is the best course of action
Dart stayed down on the turf and grabbed his knee after a Rams defender smashed into it
Join the discussion
Should politicians stay out of athletes’ careers, or are their comments fair game for fans and players?
‘Some things are bigger than football, and this is one of those things,’ Carter said. ‘Jaxson is one of our leaders. He’s the face of our franchise.
Meanwhile, the ‘Trump Curse’ has been a prominent internet trend amongst sports fans following the President’s involvement in multiple events over the past year.
Most notably, many fans pointed to Trump’s presence at Madison Square Garden in Game 3 of the NBA finals earlier this summer.
The Knicks ended up losing the game to the San Antonio Spurs, making it the only loss of their playoff run before eventually lifting the NBA Championship.
Meanwhile, other fans have pointed to the President’s controversial involvement during the World Cup after he called up FIFA chief Gianni Infantino to request that they look into the red card and ban handed to USMNT striker Folarin Balogun.
FIFA eventually suspended Balogun’s ban, thus allowing him to feature in their round of 16 game, only for the USA to get destroyed 4-1 by Belgium on the day.
