Getty Giants QB Daniel Jones.
On Friday, the New York Giants officially listed quarterback Daniel Jones as questionable for Sunday’s home game against the Arizona Cardinals. Head coach Joe Judge went on record ahead of Friday’s practice session claiming he’d like to know by night’s end if he would indeed have the 23-year-old signal-caller at his disposal come kickoff. While Judge may have ultimately been informed of Jones’ status that night, Big Blue faithful didn’t get word on their quarterback until the day after. However, the slight delay appears to have been well worth the wait.
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Daniel Jones to Start vs. Cardinals: Report
Jordan Raanan has reported that sources close to ESPN have confirmed that Jones will indeed start Sunday’s game against the Arizona Cardinals after being held out of the team’s Week 13 victory over the Seattle Seahawks with a hamstring injury.
Coach Judge noted on Friday that he was “fairly optimistic” at the prospect of Jones returning under center this week. The quarterback had been trending in the right direction for some time, culminating in full-practice participation that day, his first such participation since sustaining his hamstring injury against the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 12.
“I’m fairly optimistic.” Judge said. “At the same time there’s a ways to go, and we’ve gotta be fair to him. I’m gonna talk to the trainers and make sure the medical team and coaching staff are on the same page and that we do the right thing by this guy.”
In 11 game appearances this season, the second-year pro has completed 228 of his 361 pass attempts for eight touchdowns and nine interceptions. With that said, he’s drastically improved his consistency over his last three outings. From Week 9-12 (Week 11 bye) Jones posted two of his best completion percentage performances this season, while going three consecutive games without a turnover, a career-best streak.
On top of his improved game management skills, Jones has been lethal this season as a rusher. His 403 yards on 55 carries (7.3 avg) ranks second on the team to Wayne Gallman’s 504 yards. However, his ailing hamstring could limit Jones’ usage in the running game for the forthcoming weeks.
Jones will look to keep his stellar play going in Week 14 against a Cardinals team riding a three-game losing streak. Over that span, Arizona has allowed an average 28.6 ppg, eighth-most in the NFL during that period.
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Giants Activate CB Jarren Williams
While the Giants defense as a whole has surprised many, cementing themselves as one of the better leagues in all of football, there’s no hiding the fact that New York has been literally ailing in the secondary.
On Friday the team placed cornerback Madre Harper on injured reserve, making him the Giants’ third defensive back currently on IR who’s logged at least 24 snaps in a single game this season, joining fellow cornerback Ryan Lewis and safety Adrian Colbert.
Originally, the team counteracted the loss of Harper by adding Montre Hartage to the active roster. On Saturday they opted to add a bit more reinforcement in the secondary, activating cornerback Jarren Williams from the practice squad.
Claimed back in August following his release by the Cardinals (fittingly enough), the 5-foot-10-inch, 190-pound undrafted free agent out of Albany quickly began to make waves during training camp.
His unofficial 4.28 speed and physicality caught the eyes of numerous Giants coaches.
“He’s a guy who takes coaching points from the classroom to the field. He’s very receptive, he plays with a good demeanor,” head coach Joe Judge said of Williams over the summer. “He’s got a good body frame on him. He’s almost built a little bit more like a safety at times than a corner. He factors into different positions in the kicking game for you.”
“I like the way he comes out every day. [special teams coordinator] Jerome (Henderson) gets on him pretty hard. He responds the right way and he’s shown improvement.”
Henderson added to that praise, claiming “We may have something here,” when discussing Williams to reporters. On Sunday, the cornerback will get his first crack to prove that statement true.
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