Getty Daniel Jones & Saquon Barkley of the NY Giants
The New York Giants offense shined in the team’s Week 16 victory over the Washington Redskins. Big Blue put up an outstanding 41 offensive points, their most all season, led by the brilliant performances of their quarterback-running back duo of Daniel Jones and Saquon Barkley.
While Jones and Barkley’s stellar showings last week helped the Giants add another “W” in the win column, it has also awarded each player with personal league-wide recognition.
The teammates swept the FedEx NFL Air and Ground Player of the Week awards for Week 17 of the 2019 NFL season, just the second time that such a feat has occurred this year.
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Saquon Barkley Reminds All of His Greatness
Ever since Saquon Barkley returned from injury in Week 7, it had been apparent that he was not himself. Barkley rode a seven-game streak where he averaged just 53.2 rushing yards per game, along with a five-game span of being held scoreless.
However, in Week 15, he began to show glimpses of himself, rushing for 100+ yards for the first time since Week 2, while finding the end zone twice. While that performance was a breath of fresh air for Barkley, the Giants organization, and G-Men fans worldwide, it was just a precursor of things to come.
Barkley exploded in Week 16 vs. the Washington Redskins. The reigning NFL Rookie of the Year touched the ball 26 times, scoring one touchdown and totaling 279 yards from scrimmage, the most by a Giants player in a single game in franchise history.
GettySaquon Barkley broke Tiki Barber’s NYG single-game yards from scrimmage record on Sunday
Barkley’s efforts were good enough to help him claim the FedEx Ground NFL Player of the Week. The all-world running back had been honored with this award just one time prior in his nearly two-year NFL career, back in Week 11 of the 2018 season.
Daniel Jones is Just Getting Started
Daniel Jones returned the New York Giants starting lineup in Week 16 and quickly reminded everyone why the week prior served as Eli Manning’s likely last-ever home start as a member of Big Blue.
Jones torched the Washington Redskins defense to the tune of 352 passing yards and an eye-popping five touchdowns. The stellar performance by Jones was good enough to help him capture FedEx’s NFL Air Player of the Week honors for the first time in Jones’ young, yet promising, career.
Jones has endured his number of hiccups in what is his rookie season. However, there is no doubting the amount of upside that this once-perceived draft reach presents moving forward.
Jones has tossed four-plus touchdowns in three of his last six games as the team’s starter. With just one week left to go in the 2019 season, Jones will need back-to-back five touchdown outings to break Baker Mayfield’s rookie single-season passing touchdowns record of 27. Interestingly enough, the Giants opponents this weekend, the Philadelphia Eagles, allow the most touchdown passes on a per-game basis this season when playing on the road.
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