Daniel Jones cautious not to let complacency set in after preseason debut

How levelheaded is Giants rookie quarterback Daniel Jones?

Glad you asked.

The sixth overall pick in the NFL draft is so grounded that he refused to rest his laurel on his perfect preseason series last week against the Jets as he went through another week of developing and preparing for his next preseason game which comes Friday night against the Chicago Bears.

“I think for everyone, it’s just to build off what we’ve done, what we did in that first game, and what we've done since then, and kind of taking the next step as a team,” Jones said, reverting to the team approach rather than speaking just for himself, when asked about what his mindset is. “I think with each group, it’s just building off what we’ve done.”

To that end, Jones isn’t necessarily about reiterating what he did last week that led to such a successful first series. Rather, he’s been preparing and learning just as he has been since walking in the door in East Rutherford.

“I think it’s the same process in preparing for this week as it was last week,” he said.

“I think that’s part of being consistent, is having the same urgency to prepare every week, and I’ve certainly tried to do that so far.”

Thus far, it’s worked. Jones has drawn rave reviews from the coaches and team officials such as general manager Dave Gettleman and Chief Operating Officer John Mara.

“So far, so good," Mara said this week about Jones. "He’s everything that we thought he would be. He’s been terrific on the practice field, did a good job the other night.”

However, Mara, like head coach Pat Shurmur and Gettleman, cautioned people to taper their enthusiasm a little bit as there is still a lot of the preseason left.

He also echoed the words of Gettleman and Shurmur about the team's commitment to Eli Manning as its starter for 2019.

Jones is fine with that. “I think my job right now is to prepare, to improve as much as I can, and control what I can control. How that plays out, I certainly hope we’re winning a whole lot of games, too,” he said.

As far as his improvement is concerned, Jones agreed that his arrow is pointing in the right direction, particularly in one area.

“I think, for the most part, trying not to make mistakes over and over again,” he said.

“I think that’s how you learn, is not repeating mistakes. I think that’s a big thing, and trying to focus on that. When you’re told something once, to correct it and move on so you can take the next steps. I think I’ve done a decent job with that.”

While some will note that Jones’ first outing consisted mostly of him making his first read, on a deeper level, Jones also showed the coaching staff how far he’s come along in his recognition of how plays are unfolding, and his anticipation of where to go with the ball before the play actually completely unfolds all the way.

As for what Friday night’s game against the Bears holds in store regarding playing time, Jones is just waiting for it to play out like the rest of us.

“I know there will just be more to it now with the second game,” he said. “We’ve had a little bit more time to prepare, and I’m sure they have, so it’ll be just a little bit more.

"But, I think the same idea is to execute, to move the ball, and score points. So, If I’m doing that, if we’re doing that, I think it’ll be successful.”