Daniel Jones Remains Diplomatic About His Time with Giants

Former New York Giants quarterback Daniel Jones reflected briefly on his time with the New York Giants during his introductory press conference with the Indianapolis Colts media this week following his signing a one-year contract to compete with incumbent Anthony Richardson for the starting quarterback job.

Predictably, Jones, when asked about his time with the Giants, didn’t offer anything earth-shattering regarding his thoughts as to why things didn’t work out with the team that gave him a four-year, $160 million deal after the 2022 season.

“I think there's a number of reasons, and you can certainly go back and look at those and pick them apart,” he said.

“Reflect on that, see where you could have done a better job, and see where you could have obviously played better and helped the team out in more situations.”

To his credit, Jones has been nothing but a class act when the topic of his failed tenure with the Giants is raised.

The team’s first-round pick in 2019 (sixth overall) was admittedly put in a challenging position early in his career between the revolving door that saw three different head coaches and multiple play-callers in his ear and the lack of a strong supporting cast around him.

Some might even argue that the Giants' decision last year not to bring back running back Saquon Barkley, who, in retrospect, proved to be a safety net for Jones and the offense, was also a factor.

That said, Jones was not blameless for his shortcomings as the Giants quarterback.

Issues such as his painfully slow processing time and reluctance to trust what he saw on potential deep passes were, at times, beyond frustrating to watch.

His injury history, some of which resulted from him trying to squeeze every last yard out of a play, didn’t help matters either.

Still, whatever reason one wants to look at, Jones, despite being given almost six full seasons to silence critics and prove that he could be the Giants’ guy moving forward, just didn’t work out.

The Giants cut their losses on him during last year’s bye week to avoid the continued risk of his becoming injured which had that happened to where he wouldn't have been able to pass a physical, would have resulted in the team paying him a $23 million injury guarantee.

Jones, who is looking ahead to competing with Richardson and helping the Colts however he can, believes there are lessons to be learned from his failed tenure in New York.

“I think you're always kind of reflecting and looking back on your experiences, seeing things, trying to evaluate the positive things you did and what wasn't as good,” he said.

“I'll always do that. I always look back at those things, but (I am) grateful for my time (in New York) and excited for this opportunity (with the Colts).”

Daniel Jones Remains Diplomatic About His Time with Giants

More New York Giants Coverage

New York Giants On SI Social Media