New York Giants fans have had mixed feelings about the performance of Daniel Jones so far this season. While Jones has not yet played up to par, along with the rest of the offense, there still is reason for optimism that the second-year quarterback out of Duke will be the franchise quarterback of the New York Giants.
Daniel Jones Is the New York Giants Franchise Quarterback
Good Aspects of Daniel Jones’ Game
Daniel Jones has shown flashes of potential both in his rookie year and this season. He threw for 24 touchdowns and 12 interceptions in the 2019 season, leaving fans with the hope that the Giants had found Eli Manning‘s successor.
This season, however, has not started so great, as Jones’ numbers do not replicate the impressive rookie season he had. Daniel Jones has thrown for 1,410 yards, five touchdowns, and seven interceptions with a 61.9 percent completion rate. The numbers are not convincing, but his play certainly is.
Jones flashed his potential for using his feet to extend plays in 2019. It seems that the new coaching staff took notice and put his feet to use, integrating more designed quarterback runs into Jones’ repertoire. Through seven games, Jones has already exceeded his rushing totals from last season, running for 296 yards and 11 first downs. His speed is also on display, gaining national attention against the Philadelphia Eagles on Thursday Night Football. Jones hit an impressive 21.23 MPH on his 80-yard run in Philadelphia, the fastest among quarterbacks since 2018.
It also looks like Jones is starting to become more comfortable in Jason Garrett‘s offense. For most of the season, it seemed that the offense was not tailored to Jones’ strengths, playing more conservative than fans would have hoped for. The Giants did not get the ball downfield particularly well either, with the offensive line playing a large part in not giving Jones enough time in the pocket.
Daniel Jones showed what he could really do in this new offense last week vs Philadelphia. It was Jones’ best game so far, and it looked like the Giants were going to come away with their first win in the City of Brotherly Love since 2013, until it ultimately fell apart. The game was not on Jones at all. He threw for 187 yards and two touchdowns, along with one interception that should not have happened.
Jones’ performance against the Eagles earned him his highest passer rating of the season. He led a 97-yard drive that ended with a Sterling Shepard goal-line touchdown pass, a good sign for the Giants moving forward as they could not get the red-zone offense going for most of the season. While the team did not end up with a win, Jones showed that he is more than capable of putting up better numbers with just a little more help from his offense.
Nagging Turnovers
The turnovers are still a problem for Daniel Jones, unfortunately. He has thrown seven interceptions and has fumbled in every game except for two, losing four of them. This brings Jones’ career totals to a whopping 23 fumbles and 19 interceptions. Many fans had hoped this would be fixed with off-season work. It looks that Jones will have to put even more emphasis on fixing his ball security and decision-making going forward.
Final Word
While Daniel Jones has not been the best quarterback he could be this season, there should be no doubt that he can be the quarterback of the foreseeable future for the Giants. Jones is being pressured on 29.2 percent of his dropbacks, the most in the NFL. His receivers have also dropped 16 passes this season, that is absurd. If Jones even gets just some help, better play from the offensive line mixed in with better receivers will help his development going forward and will give Giants fans what they finally want to see.
