The New York Giants earned their second win of the season on October 22 and quarterback Tyrod Taylor achieved a 116.9 passer rating on ESPN — his best of the year so far.
The strong performance once again prompted questions of a potential QB controversy during the postgame press conferences. After all, Daniel Jones’ highest passer rating this year was a 103.5 in Week 2.
“Has Tyrod made any argument for being the [starting] quarterback when Daniel gets right?” A reporter asked head coach Brian Daboll.
His response: “Yeah, I’d just say Tyrod had a good game this game. He’s a true pro and I’m glad we got him.”
While the answer wasn’t as definitive a “no” as the last time Daboll was asked about a QB change, it does appear the Giants will continue to stick with Jones once healthy. His upside and his $160 million contract probably have something to do with that, even if the wily veteran has had more success in 2023.
Giants Insider Breaks Down QB Controversy of Tyrod Taylor vs. Daniel Jones
The Athletic’s NYG media insider Dan Duggan wrote about Taylor’s performance versus the Washington Commanders after the victory.
“There’s every reason to believe Jones will reclaim his starting job when he’s cleared for contact, which could come this week,” he voiced in the column. “But there at least has to be an acknowledgment that Taylor has performed better in some areas, particularly throwing downfield and navigating the pocket.”
“Taylor completed 18 of 29 passes for 279 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions Sunday,” Duggan went on. “He averaged 9.6 yards per attempt thanks to six completions of at least 22 yards. Jones is averaging 5.9 yards per attempt in five starts and has nine completions of 20-plus yards.”
While Duggan did admit that Saquon Barkley’s return has likely helped Taylor, he was not willing to use the offensive line’s improvement as a factor.
“It’s tricky to separate sacks from quarterback play,” he explained. “Jones has been sacked on 30.8 percent of his pressures, which was the second-highest rate in the league entering Sunday. Just 12.9 percent of Taylor’s pressures had been turned into sacks entering Sunday.”
Duggan added that “the eye test confirms Taylor is more comfortable navigating a collapsing pocket.” He noted a Week 7 13-yard pass to tight end Darren Waller and a seven-yard gain to Barkley as evidence. Both came under pressure.
Taylor also has zero turnovers, while Jones has already racked up seven.
Giants’ Brian Daboll Has No Update on Daniel Jones’ Neck Injury
Giants QB controversy aside, there’s a real question of whether or not Jones will even return in Week 8.
“He got looked at Friday,” Daboll relayed on Jones. “Didn’t get cleared on Friday, so he wasn’t able to go.”
After a follow-up on his availability going forward, the Giants HC stated that he’ll “have a lot of meetings tomorrow about [Jones] and the next day,” but that he doesn’t have any answer at this time.
“Honestly, I would be telling you something that’s probably an inaccurate statement,” Daboll concluded. “So, I’ll wait until I hear from the people that know a lot more about it than I do, relative to his status or what it looks like and all those things.”
Big Blue will take on the crosstown rival New York Jets next weekend on October 29.
We’ll hear from Daboll again on Monday, October 23, and Jones should speak with Kay Adams and the Up & Adams Show as he does each week. Until he’s cleared, Taylor is the unquestioned QB1.
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Giants’ Brian Daboll Responds to Questions of QB Controversy After Week 7