Giants QB Daniel Jones Gets Candid About His 2021 Season
Giants quarterback Daniel Jones has yet to reach the potential the team saw in him when they drafted him No. 6 overall in 2019. And in trying to be fair to Jones, Giants team co-owner John Mara admitted that the franchise had done everything possible to screw up Jones's development, from instability at the coaching rank to not fielding a solid offensive line in front of him.
While Jones is undoubtedly appreciative of Mara's admission, the 24-year-old, in a recent episode of ESPN's Breaking Blue podcast, refused to absolve himself of any blame.
I’m certainly the one responsible for how I play, and I take that very seriously. I haven’t played well enough. We haven’t won enough games to this point. That’s what I am focused on. And making sure I’m improving as a player as we go through this offseason and into next season, so I am able to put this team in a position to win games."
To his credit, Jones has made some strides in his game. He's done a much better job of taking care of the football and moving around the pocket. Before a season-ending neck injury, Jones had cut down both his interceptions and his fumbles to seven apiece, the lowest totals of his career.
But Jones's weekly performances have been uninspiring, to put it mildly. Based on some of his decisions, there seems to be little indication of the game having slowed down for him.
Last season, his second year in Jason Garett's offense, Jones looked like he regressed. He didn't see the field well; hence some of his throws were ill-timed or poorly placed.
A continued alarming aspect of Jones's game occurred when his read was taken away. Jones often looked unsure of what he was seeing and missed wide-open receivers as a result. Granted, some of that might have come from playing behind a sieve offensive line, but it was surprising he didn't use his legs--one of his best attributes--to extend plays.
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Jones has also struggled in the red zone. Last season, five of his ten touchdown passes came in the red zone, the worst mark among starting NFL quarterbacks in the league and a mark falling behind Jaguars rookie quarterback Trevor Lawrence, who threw seven red-zone touchdowns. And of Jones' 45 career touchdown throws since 2019, only 24 have come inside the red zone (53.3 percent).
Not all of that is necessarily on Jones -- his supporting cast has left a lot to be desired--but that's still an alarmingly low rate for a starting quarterback who at some point needs to figure out a way to make plays.
Add to that the injuries, which are beginning to pile up. Jones has far too often put himself in harm's way and needs to better learn to protect himself and when to give up on a play to live to see another down rather than trying to play the hero.
Speaking of injuries, while there is optimism that he'll recover from the sprained neck that ended his 2021 season early if he doesn't start doing a better job protecting himself, he's not going to last much longer in this league.
Jones, who is entering the final year of his rookie contract, will get another chance to put to bed all the questions about whether he is indeed a franchise quarterback.
As for whether the Giants will exercise his option year, that would be a surprising development and one that wouldn't necessarily provide any kind of cost-benefit if they were to do so.
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