QB or Not to QB? Tiki Barber Makes a Case Against Giants' Drafting a QB in First Round
Whether it's Caleb Williams, Drake Maye, Jayden Daniels, or John Doe, there is a large section of the New York Giants fan base that is begging general manager Joe Schoen to move on from quarterback Daniel Jones sooner rather than later, even if it means trading up.
But former Giants running back Tiki Barber, co-host of WFAN radio's"Evan and Tiki" early afternoon show, says that approach doesn't make sense.
"This team needs so much--there just aren't good enough players in enough places," Barber opined. "To put it all on the quarterback... Let's say they draft Drake Maye. 'We got our savior!' and then he's brought with ineptitude and ineffectiveness around him, and he gets beat up and loses confidence [and] he gets hurt as a rookie. Now, what do we do? We're stuck 'cause we haven't built from the foundation."
Barber makes a strong point in that those banging the drum for the Giants to trade up to get one of the projected top three quarterbacks in this draft class or even reach for a quarterback in the first round are inviting history to repeat itself.
The Giants took the same approach when they drafted Daniel Jones sixth overall in 2019. They were so focused on getting a successor to quarterback Eli Manning, yet in the interim, they failed to build the offensive line, and they also didn't have a legitimate No. 1 receiver in place for Jones when he was named the starter two games into his rookie campaign.
While Jones had a decent rookie campaign, throwing 24 touchdowns to 12 interceptions (both career highs), despite not having a strong supporting cast, between injuries and his supporting cast, he struggled to achieve consistency.
Barber pointed to the success of the two Super Bowl teams, the Kansas City Chiefs and San Francisco 49ers, as examples of who built their respective franchises correctly.
"Too many teams in the NFL get enamored with building from the head," Barber continued. "You gotta build the legs and that (butt) first. ... Teams that are sitting where they are now, they built it that way. The Kansas City Chiefs built it that way. Did they have a great quarterback in Alex Smith? No. But he was pretty good enough, right? Won double-digit games for long enough, and the foundation was built. And look where they are.
"The San Francisco 49ers have been building with defensive linemen and offensive linemen for a decade now. It's all they do. All right. It's like, 'Damn, the quarterback. We'll take Jimmy Garoppolo, who stinks and can't stay healthy. But guess what? We're gonna consistently be in the playoffs.'
"Foundations win championships or get you in a position to do it. It's not by sticking a pretty head that can be the face of my franchise on top of everything and saying, 'Alright, we're good to go.' That's not how it works, man. Build it the right way."
Former New York Giants running back Tiki Barber believes the Giants need to build around Daniel Jones in the upcoming draft rather than spend a first-round draft pick to replace him.
Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports
While Barber's argument makes sense--the Giants do have a lot of areas that need to be addressed--one flaw is that Jones, with a shaky supporting cast around him in 2022, still managed to have his best season, finishing 9-6-1 and leading the Giants to their first playoff berth since 2016.
In that 2022 season, Jones also posted his best completion percentage (based on a minimum of 200 pass attempts), his lowest interception rate, and his best "success rate" (45.7 percent, defined as achieving a minimum of 40 percent of the yards needed on first down, 60 percent of the needed yards on second down, and 100 percent of the yards needed on third and fourth downs)--all that despite being tied with Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow for the third most sacked quarterback in 2022 (51).
Jones's success in 2022 supports Giants general manager Joe Schoen's reported belief that the rash of injuries to the offensive line, running back Saquon Barkley, and tight end Darren Waller were significant factors in Jones's performance having declined.
As far as Barber is concerned, Jones can still become a top-five quarterback if he has the right support system around him. But Barber also acknowledged that Jones's injury history needs to be considered, given how the quarterback has already had two neck injuries in three years and is now coming off a torn ACL.
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