Many view 2022 as a make-or-break year for Daniel Jones. While there are questions surrounding his future beyond the upcoming campaign, he at least has the support of ownership for the present.
As noted by Paul Schwartz of the New York Post, John Mara reiterated the team’s commitment to their incumbent starter amidst the flurry of big-name moves which have taken place at the QB position this offseason. As Mara said, “people are realizing it’s by far the most important position in sports and either you have one or you don’t. We think we have one.”
Schwartz does note that the Giants have made a move at the position already. The team signed veteran Tyrod Taylor earlier this month, adding an experienced backup with extended time as a starter in his previous NFL stops. The particulars of the deal (two years, $11M) open the door to a competition for the starters’ job, but Mara remains confident that Jones can be successful under the right circumstances.
“We still have a lot of confidence in Daniel and think he’s going to be a very good quarterback if we just put the right pieces around him and give him a little bit more continuity and stability”, he said. “He hasn’t had that since he’s been here. Let’s give him a chance to prove himself. He’s shown flashes of it, for sure.”
In three years with Big Blue, the former sixth-overall pick has a 12-25 record, 50 total touchdowns and a combined 57 turnovers. Instability at the coaching level, as well as injuries — including to the Duke alum himself this past year — throughout the offense have plagued his NFL career to date. It’s not a surprise, then, that the team is expected to decline his fifth-year option. Nevertheless, Mara said that a second contract for Jones “is certainly our hope.”
With sufficient improvement in 2022, Jones could very well see himself as the team’s starting signal-caller for the foreseeable future. Despite the evidence pointing to that being unlikely, that scenario is clearly still the team’s preference as of now.
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