Bleacher Report Names This Giant as Being Dangerously Close to “Bust-ville"
In the latest round of a seemingly growing number of negative opinions surrounding Giants quarterback Daniel Jones, Bleacher Report’s Alex Ballentine listed Jones as one young NFL player who is dangerously close to achieving bust status ahead of the 2022 season.
Ballentine argued that Jones, the No. 6 overall pick in the 2019 draft, has “thrown four more touchdowns than sixth-round pick Gardner Minshew with more than double the interceptions.”
And after a promising-looking rookie season in which Jones threw 24 touchdowns to 12 interceptions and eclipsed 3,000 yards in 13 games, the improvement has been missing.
It’s hard to argue against the numbers, but with that said, the Giants, as co-owner John Mara openly admitted, haven’t done the youngster any favors by failing to ensure stability in the coaching ranks and by failing to surround Jones with a solid supporting cast, including an offensive line.
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But an argument can also be made that Jones hasn’t yet figured out how to elevate his game to overcome some of the shortcomings he’s been dealt.
Since entering the league in 2019, he’s been sacked 105 times, according to Statmuse, which puts him sixth in the league behind Matt Ryan (Atlanta, 129), Russell Wilson (Seattle, 128), Carson Wentz (Eagles/Colts, 119), Baker Mayfield (Cleveland, 109), and Kyler Murray (Arizona, 106)
Yet all of those quarterbacks listed ahead of Jones have managed to find a way to win at least 21 games over that same period, with Jones managing just 12 wins as a starter.
Jones’s aforementioned solid rookie season came under Pat Shurmur, who deployed more of a West Coast offense mix that took better advantage of what Jones did well and which also mitigated the lack of a solid offensive line.
In 2019, Jones was sacked 38 times, 11th most in the league, a season in which, according to Pro Football Focus, he averaged 2.84 seconds in the pocket, but just 2.70 seconds to his attempted throws. But when he had to move off his first read, that’s where his problems began.
According to PFF's 2021 Quarterback Annual Report, which reviewed all the starting quarterbacks from the 2020 season, Jones typically threw to his first read on 70 percent of his pass attempts, garnering a 55.4 percent accuracy rate. When he had to go to his next read, which he did on 13 percent of his throws, his accuracy rate dropped to 42.1 percent.
The Giants hope that the combination of new head coach Brian Daboll and offensive coordinator Mike Kafka, who previously worked with two of the league’s top-tier quarterbacks (Josh Allen, Bills, and Patrick Mahomes, Chiefs) can finally pull out the best of Jones.
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