Daniel Jones had a great game on Thursday night against the Washington Football Team. He posted 344 total yards and two total touchdowns, and most importantly no turnovers. In his young career, however, he always plays well against Washington. In order to help the New York Giants get out of an 0-2 start, Jones needs to take advantage of a bad Atlanta Falcons defense and have another great game. Consistency is key, and if Daniel Jones can finally gain confidence and lead this offense, good things could be on the horizon for the Giants.
Daniel Jones Needs Another Strong Performance Against Atlanta Falcons
Analyzing the Little Details
Daniel Jones played very smart football in Week 2. He recorded a 102.2 quarterback rating and went 22/32 for 249 yards and one passing touchdown.
11 points were taken off the board, one coming on what would have been Jones’ second rushing touchdown of the night. The other was on a wide-open touchdown pass, dropped by Darius Slayton.
If those two things go right, the Giants are 1-1 and first in the division. No need to dwell, but Daniel Jones played great. The Giants ran a good amount of RPO on Thursday as well, and Washington could not seem to stop it. The good part about Jones using his legs was that he protected the ball very well. He slid numerous times instead of taking a hit and risking the ball to pop out. He kept two hands tight on the football and that resulted in 95 rushing yards and one score.
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Daniel Jones also knew when to take a sack and let a play go. There was one play where he had Sterling Shepard wide open to his left, but he did not look there and took a sack. While that play was questionable, again he took care of the ball and decided to take sacks and risk getting strip-sacked like in the past.
Jones took care of the ball on Thursday night. He relatively has cut down the turnovers, as his last interception was in November of last year. The fumble in Week 1 was bad, but he clearly adjusted just four days after.
Looking Ahead to Atlanta
The Atlanta Falcons defense is simply not good. They have given up 540 yards passing and eight passing touchdowns in two weeks. They’ve allowed 80 points overall so far. If there was a game for the Giants offense and Daniel Jones to really boost their confidence, this is it.
They need to take advantage of a weak Atlanta secondary and take shots down the field. Another positive from Thursday is that Jones became more comfortable as the game went on, and called audibles on numerous occasions which ended up in first downs or better.
If Kenny Golladay can become more involved in the offense, as well as Kadarius Toney, this offense can really show out on Sunday. Sterling Shepard continues to be their most reliable receiver and is currently seventh in the entire NFL in receiving yards with 207. The questionable Evan Engram has a chance to play this week as well as he is trying to return from a calf injury. Saquon Barkley will likely not be limited anymore with 9 days of rest.
If the Giants want to climb back in this NFC East race, they will need another great performance from their third-year quarterback.
Main Photo: Embed from Getty Images
