In order to see if Daniel Jones is truly capable of being the starting quarterback, the New York Giants need to give him the weapons to be successful.
It’s no secret that quarterback Daniel Jones has been rather underwhelming since the New York Giants drafted him No. 6 overall in the 2019 NFL Draft, but then again, so has the whole team. One man can only do so much on a 53-man roster and Jones’ career record of 12-25 shows that there are far deeper issues at play here than whether or not he can be the guy in the Big Apple.
Let’s not pretend that Daniel Jones doesn’t have legitimate talent, as he showcases it in his scrambling and also in his ability to complete passes when he has sound blocking and his receivers can catch a ball (or even get open).
Daniel Jones deserves a real shot from the New York Giants
These are the types of things that should be a given for an NFL team to have, yet when it comes to the offensive line and reliable pass-catchers, the only team the Giants have an edge on is the Jets. The Jets are not the bar.
For far too long have the New York Giants settled for mediocrity and expect the issues of the team to solve themselves from within. The front office fails to add any moderately skilled players year in and year out while they bring in a special teams coordinator with no prior head coaching experience and hope for the best.
In his last two seasons (26 games) as a starter in the NFL, Daniel Jones has been pressured on 308 dropbacks and sacked 83 times. Read that sentence again. 308 pressures and 83 sacks… To put it into perspective, Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow, who has the supposed worst offensive line in football, was pressured on 254 dropbacks (24.3%) and sacked 83 times in the exact same amount of games played as Jones.
He ended his rookie year on IR after his knee was mutilated because his blindside tackle missed his block.
How can a quarterback possibly be expected to succeed in the NFL if he’s facing pressure from the defense on roughly 27.5% of dropbacks? Jones was given the key to drive the Giants’ offense, but the team never gave the guy airbags or even a steering wheel for crying out loud.
Big Blue hasn’t had a Pro-Bowl offensive lineman since guard Chirs Snee back in 2012 which, doing the math, was 20-years ago. Additionally, Evan Engram (2020) has been the only Pro-Bowler on the offense since Jones has taken over as the starter, and even then he had 11 drops that season with a 55.4 passer rating when targeted. In other words, even when he’s had help, it’s the best worst option in the NFL.
There’s simply no plausible way to evaluate whether or not Daniel Jones can be the guy for the New York Giants until we see him be given efficient protection in the pocket and satisfactory weapons on offense. Saquon Barkley has shown that no matter how gifted you are unless you have a reliably sufficient supporting cast around you, there’s only so much you can do.
In order to see if “Danny Dimes” truly has what it takes, why not follow in the footsteps of the Miami Dolphins or the Las Vegas Raiders and make a big push to acquire a superstar wide receiver? The worst thing that could happen is that Jones turns out to be an average quarterback and you now have a superstar wideout on your team for the next five or so years. The best thing? He lives up to his nickname and proves he can be a reliable starter in the league.
The New York Football Giants have the rights to the No. 5 and the No. 7 overall selection in the 2022 NFL Draft, respectively. Go out and get the best receiver on the board in USC’s Drake London and then add an offensive lineman in guard Charles Cross of Mississippi St. or dedicate the No. 7 pick to the defense and add a man to the trenches on offense with their 2nd-Round pick (No. 36 overall).
It’s time for this team to stop settling as the second/third-best team in the NFC East and to start setting their eyes on bigger aspirations, like making the postseason. Every sport in North America is better with a team from New York City in the playoffs (except the Jets). Give the people what they want.