Things aren’t as they seem between Daniel Jones and the New York Giants. Not when it comes to the quarterback’s injury history and status moving forward, amid rumors the team is ready to move on and maybe select Jones’ successor during the 2024 NFL draft.
Jones spoke with reporters on the first day of the team’s offseason program on Monday, April 15. During his Q&A, Jones gave what the New York Post’s Ryan Dunleavy called a “significant” answer about the neck injury that kept him out of four games last season.
According to Jones, that problem was merely a “stinger-type injury, which is common in football.”
#Giants Daniel Jones: “My neck is 100 percent healthy. That was a stinger-type injury, which is common in football.”
That’s significant.
Jones’ contention his “neck is 100 percent healthy” goes against rumors the Giants have grown weary of the player’s struggles to stay healthy. A report from ESPN’s Jordan Raanan on March 23 revealed, “Multiple sources have told ESPN that Jones’ injury history is what has the team contemplating moving on.”
Raanan also detailed the risks the Giants might want to avoid after reluctantly handing Jones a four-year contract worth $160 million last offseason: “Jones now has two neck injuries and a torn ACL in the past three years. That would be risky to build around, especially after the Giants fought until the final minutes in negotiations for the team-friendly structure of the contract. Jones got his $40 million per season; the Giants set it up with an out after two years.”
Jones indicated he still plans “to be ready to go by training camp” because he hasn’t suffered setbacks with the ACL, per NorthJersey.com’s Art Stapleton.
Daniel Jones says he has been throwing for a bit now.
“The plan is to be ready to go by training camp.” Says he hasn’t had any setbacks to this point. #NYGiants
Yet, it’s the quarterback’s words about his neck that have some searching for answers and questioning the true motives of the team ahead of draft day on Thursday, April 25.
Daniel Jones’ Answers Raise Questions About Injury Narrative
One of those taken aback by the stinger claims is Dan Duggan of The Athletic. He believes Jones “did himself a disservice to not get the word out that it was a stinger.”
Jones wasn’t more explicit after being forced off against the Miami Dolphins in Week 5 last season. Instead, he remained sidelined until returning briefly against the Las Vegas Raiders in Week 9, only to tear his ACL and consign a miserable season to history.
The obvious speculation is whether the Giants wanted Jones’ initial injury to appear worse than it actually was. That would give Big Blue a tangible reason to begin moving on from Jones without having to publicly admit their mistake about handing him a lucrative deal.
Duggan speculated Jones’ injury history “provides some cover” for general manager Joe Schoen and head coach Brian Daboll. As Duggan put it, “No one in Cincinnati is talking about moving on from Burrow despite his injury history, so it’s obviously about more than just the injuries with Jones.”
If the Giants’ primary decision-makers are trying to usurp Jones by stealth, their plan would likely go into effect during Round 1.
Giants Have Actively Scouted Draft QBs
Doing due diligence on draft-eligible passers is on the to-do list of every struggling team at this time of year. The Giants are no exception, coming off a 6-11 campaign and owning the sixth pick.
Even in that context, the Giants have been active scouting some of the more highly-touted signal-callers in this class. Their efforts have included hosting a private workout for Michigan’s national champion J.J. McCarthy, per Raanan’s colleague Adam Schefter.
Michigan QB J.J. McCarthy’s final pre-draft visit will come Tuesday and Wednesday, when he is scheduled to meet with the Commanders. McCarthy then will have visited the Commanders, Patriots and Giants, while also conducting private workouts for the Vikings, Broncos and Giants.
The Giants have also worked out Drake Maye and visited with Michael Penix Jr., amid growing rumors about their interest in drafting a new QB1.
Keeping their options open is one thing, but the Giants surely wouldn’t be this active if they still had complete faith in Jones as their starter. The player himself downplayed the Giants researching young QBs, per SNY.tv’s Giants Videos: “It’s the nature of our business, it’s a competitive league. The best way to handle that is to focus on what I’m doing.”
Any confusion about the true extent of Jones’ recent injuries only adds to the intrigue about what comes next for the Giants at football’s most important position.
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Giants’ Daniel Jones Gives ‘Significant’ Answer About Injury Amid Draft Rumors