On January 26, for the first time since being hired, Giants general manager Joe Schoen met with the New York media. And much like how he wasted little time on his search for a new head coach, Schoen was quick to the punch on addressing the future of quarterback Daniel Jones.
During his introductory press conference on Wednesday, Schoen made his assessment of Jones very apparent and swiftly cleared up any confusion as to whether the team could be heading in a different direction under center in 2022:
I’ve looked at Daniel and you know, once the new staff gets in here — offensive coordinator, head coach, entire staff — dive into the film as a group and look at what Daniel does best. We’re going to allow him to put his best foot forward.
I’ve looked at him and you know, I wasn’t here in the past, I don’t know what he was told what to do, but I do know this: he’s a great kid, he’s been in the building the last two days I’ve talked to him. There’s not a person who’s said a bad word about his work ethic, passion (or) desire to win. You got to have those traits as a quarterback. The kid has physical abilities. Arm strength, he’s athletic, he can run. So I’m really excited to work with Daniel. When the new staff gets in here, we’ll build an offense around Daniel to accentuate what he does best.
Jones, 24, is set to enter his fourth NFL season, meaning the Giants have a decision to make when it comes to his contract. They could either pick up his fifth-year option, which would pay him approximately $21.3 million and theoretically keep him in East Rutherford through at least the 2023 season. Or, they could choose to let him play next season in what would be a contract year. They’ll need to make a final call on the option by May 3.
Giants Focus on Putting Jones in Best Situation to Succeed
This past season was supposed to be the year the Giants got a clear picture of if Jones can serve as the team’s starter moving forward. The team went out and overhauled their receiving corps, headlined by the $72 million addition Kenny Golladay. Saquon Barkley returned to action after a lost 2020 campaign and Jones was entering the second year in Jason Garrett’s scheme.
Of course, none of that amounted to much. Golladay and rookie Kadarius Toney combined for zero receiving touchdowns. Hell, even left tackle Andrew Thomas hauled in a receiving score. Barkley struggled to refind his pre-injury form. While Garrett’s offense, which readily lacked creativity, failed to move the football with any sort of consistency. And most importantly, the offensive line continued to serve as a detriment to Jones’ development.
“If you want to see Daniel Jones put his best foot forward, he’s got to be on his feet. If you want to see what Saquon can do, it would be nice if we could block guys,” Schoen told Ralph Vacchiano of SNY.
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John Mara Backs Jones, Shoulders Blame
Jones is coming off yet another injury-plagued season and has now missed 10 games since being named the Giants starter back in 2019. His yardage output and passing touchdowns have continuously dipped since a 3,027-yard, 24-touchdown campaign as a rookie.
Giants co-owner John Mara is hopeful that surrounding Jones with the right coaching and players will lead to the quarterback’s trajectory once again pointing upwards.
“We do feel Daniel can play. We’ve done everything possible to screw this kid up since he’s been here,” Mara told reporters following the press conference. “We keep changing coaches. Keeping changing offensive coordinators. Keep changing offensive line coaches. I take a lot of responsibility for that. But let’s bring in the right group of coaches now. And give him some continuity and try to rebuild the offensive line. And then be able to make an intelligent evaluation of whether he can be the franchise quarterback or not. I have a lot of hope in Daniel. I know how badly he wants it. I know how the players feel about him. We are certainly not giving up on him.”
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Giants Make Final Call on QB Daniel Jones’ Future