The New York Giants landed a player Thursday night who they hope will be their next great pass rusher.

A few hours later, they also took a swing for their potential franchise quarterback.

After selecting Penn State star Abdul Carter with the No. 3 pick in the NFL draft, the Giants traded back into the first round later Thursday to pick Ole Miss quarterback Jaxson Dart at No. 25.

The Giants traded the No. 34 overall pick, the No. 99 pick and a third-round selection in 2026 to the Houston Texans to move up nine spots for Dart, who will join a quarterback room that already includes Russell Wilson and Jameis Winston.

Carter, meanwhile, joins a defensive front that includes Kayvon Thibodeaux, Dexter Lawrence, Brian Burns and Bobby Okereke.

Moments after selecting Carter, Giants general manager Joe Schoen announced that New York was going to exercise defensive end Thibodeaux's fifth-year option, ending speculation that the former first-round pick could be on the move via a trade.

Schoen, after the Carter pick, also hinted that the Giants could make another move later in Thursday's first round. Schoen followed through by choosing Dart instead of Colorado's Shedeur Sanders, who also was available.

The Giants spent months scouting Sanders, made multiple trips to Boulder, Colorado, met with him extensively at the Shrine Bowl, and even made him run through a private workout last week for, among others, coach Brian Daboll.

But they opted instead for Dart, who passed for 4,279 yards and 29 touchdowns last season while leading Ole Miss to a 10-3 record. The Giants entered the offseason looking for their quarterback of the future, with owner John Mara declaring it their "No. 1 issue." Now, they think they found one.

The Giants had the option to take Dart or Sanders earlier Thursday at No. 3 but couldn't pass on Carter, who was rated by some teams as the top player in the draft. Carter fits the bill as the kind of blue-chip or generational prospect that Schoen recently said "you don't pass on."

With Carter, the strength of New York's roster became even stronger. The Giants traded for Burns last offseason and selected Thibodeaux at No. 5 in the 2022 draft. Both edge rushers have a double-digit sack season on their résumés.

Carter had 12 sacks last season in his first year playing off the edge at Penn State. He played the previous two seasons at off-ball linebacker and could be deployed in a way similar to how the Dallas Cowboys use star pass rusher Micah Parsons.

The selection sets up the Giants to more closely resemble the glory years teams of the past. All four of their Super Bowl winners were built around defense, specifically a ferocious and deep pass rush.