Joe Judge Reveals Where Daniel Jones Took a Significant Step Forward
For the first several months of his tenure as Giants head coach, Joe Judge wouldn't even mention quarterback Daniel Jones by name, let alone willingly offer any kind of praise.
For the second week in a row, Judge not only spoke of how the second-year quarterback has earned his respect and admiration by showing unwavering toughness and resolve, but the head coach also did so voluntarily when he was asked about all the blitzing by the Ravens.
As the quarterback is connected to the offensive line in making some of the protection calls, Judge's thoughts naturally gravitated to his quarterback, whom he said did a very good job of identifying where the various pressure was going to come from and adjusting accordingly.
"I really like the way Daniel handled it [Sunday]," Judge said of the man whom last week he stated without any doubt was his quarterback next season.
What followed was a lengthy and glowing evaluation of the job Jones, who finished 24 of 41 for 252 yards and one touchdown while taking six sacks, did and how he showed professional growth.
"You kind of talk about what level of improvement have we seen throughout the year, I think there are a lot of things that show up on the tape yesterday with number eight. You watch him from the start of the year to through yesterday and how he handled a lot of the situations with the pressure, the ball security and the decision-making. He did a lot of things that demonstrate a lot of growth," Judge said.
"What gives us that confidence is even in games like yesterday where it didn’t come out perfectly, you can turn the tape on and you can say, ‘Hey listen, in games one through whatever, that wasn’t the guy we were looking at.’"
Jones has completed 263 of 423 passes (62.2%) for 2,714 yards, nine touchdowns, and nine interceptions for a 78.9 passer rating.
"You watch the tape and you see that guy in there operating, executing, understanding the pressure and not just standing in there with courage like he’s done all along and taken a hit, but understanding how to take the hit and deliver an accurate pass and move the sticks down the field. These are things that as he grows in this league and develops in his craft, he’s going to be able to do."
Judge, who reiterated that Jones is his quarterback of the future, said that Jones played well overall.
"But at the same time, there was a lot of growth that I saw with Daniel that’s really showed up in terms of how he had to play the game yesterday and what he’s able to do," Judge added.
Judge's faith in Jones certainly speaks volumes as the quarterback's touchdown production this year isn't anywhere close to what it was last season as a rookie.
For the most part, Jones' numbers in Year 2 aren't all that much different than his rookie year, which would suggest a lack of growth. But of late, he has drastically cut down on his turnovers (both interceptions and fumbles), which was a major sticking point in his transition from rookie to veteran.
The numbers only tell part of the story--they always have. Jones has shown the ability to identify and escape from pressures, make changes on the fly, and take what defenses give him.
In seeing Jones take steps those intangible steps forward in his development, Judge seems assured that the Giants offense is in good hands for whatever is left of this season and beyond.
