Joe Judge Has No Intention of Sitting Daniel Jones--Why That's the Right Move

The Giants head coach is standing by his quarterback. Here's why that's a smart decision.

The question is a legitimate one that had to be asked out of due diligence.

To paraphrase: Would having quarterback Daniel Jones take a seat for a game to watch be of benefit?

The answer from the ordinarily chatty Joe Judge, the man who would make such a decision, set a new record for his all-time short responses since taking over the franchise's helm.

“No.”

Judge is correct. When it comes to a quarterback—any player really—the only way they’re going to learn is by playing.

This isn’t a case like at, for example, cornerback, where a player initially designated to be the starter shows that he lacks in some critical skills necessary to play the position, such as speed or ball skills.

Jones can play the position and has shown himself capable of making some gorgeous throws and engineering some impressive drives. One such impressive drive was the last-ditch effort Monday night against the Bucs when he converted two fourth and long situations en route to getting his team into the end zone only to cost his team a chance at tying the game when Bucs safety Antoine Winfield Jr broke up his two-point pass attempt to running back Dion Lewis.

On that play, Winfield managed to make up the necessary ground when Jones not only took too long to throw the ball, he also put it in a spot that made it too easy for Winfield to defend.

But those are the reasons why Jones needs to continue playing. He’s not going to develop that sense of timing, nor will he be able to advance his mental processing, which right now is his biggest vice, if he’s sitting on the bench playing the role of armchair quarterback.

This, after all, is a new system that the coaches have already said is nothing like the one that Jones ran under Pat Shurmur. And he has eight games in against live competition where again his struggle with mental processing is rearing its ugly heads.

The calls to bench Jones are further complicated by the fact that despite their 1-7 record, the Giants are still very much alive in the playoff hunt in a dismal NFC East, posing a dilemma for some in that you go with your best players if you genuinely want to have a chance at winning.

The truth, though, is that even if the Giants were to make a change and win the NFC East, it would be a short-term thrill as they are still a few more pieces away from really pushing to go deep into the playoffs, let alone having a realistic chance of getting in.

That’s why you stick with Jones. You find out what you have in these last eight games and hope to see progress, just like you expect to see improvement from the team as a whole.

If Jones continues to flop like a fish out of water—and again, he’s had some moments where he’s looked brilliant—then the losing will continue to where the Giants will be in a position to draft one of the top college quarterbacks projected to be in next year’s class.

But you’re never going to find that out if you subscribe to the “let him clear his head” theory by putting him on the bench because once you go down that path, then you’ve likely headed down a road from which there is no return.