The New York Giants recently hired ex-Buffalo Bills assistant general manager Joe Schoen to be their new general manager and could be days away from naming Bills offensive coordinator Brian Daboll as their new head coach. Daboll earned Associated Press NFL Assistant Coach of the Year honors for the 2020 season after Bills quarterback Josh Allen evolved from being a "project" to a Most Valuable Player candidate, and the 46-year-old has twice interviewed with Schoen and company over the past week.
Some Giants fans have Daboll atop their wish lists of candidates because they envision him as a potential quarterback guru who could salvage the career of New York signal-caller Daniel Jones. The No. 6 overall pick from the 2019 NFL Draft hasn't yet cemented himself as a long-term answer at the position.
The Giants introduced Schoen to media members on Wednesday, and he hinted the first starting QB of his Big Blue tenure is already on the roster.
"I’ve looked at Daniel and once the new staff gets in here, we’re going to get together — offensive coordinator, head coach, the entire staff — and dive into the film as a group and look at what Daniel does best and we’re going to try to allow him to put his best foot forward," Schoen said of Jones, per Myles Simmons of Pro Football Talk. "Again, I’ve looked at him. I wasn’t here in the past so I don’t exactly know what he was told to do. But I do know this — I know he’s a great kid. He’s been in this building the last two days. I’ve talked to him. There’s not anybody in this building that’s said a bad word about his work ethic, passion, desire to win. And I think you’ve got to have those traits as a quarterback.
"And the kid has physical ability. He’s got arm strength, he’s athletic, he can run. So I’m really excited to work with Daniel. And, again, when the new staff gets here, we’ll build an offense around Daniel to accentuate what he does best."
Along with saying his team is not trading for Houston Texans star quarterback Deshaun Watson this winter, Giants co-owner John Mara also went to bat for Jones:
#Giants co-owner John Mara on Daniel Jones: “We do feel Daniel can play. We’ve done everything possible to screw this kid up.”
— Mike Garafolo (@MikeGarafolo) January 26, 2022
Points to coaching/coordinator changes, O Line struggles. Says they need to get everything right around Jones and then make an “intelligent evaluation.”
Schoen will have to decide on the fifth-year option attached to Jones' rookie contract at some point this spring, and many assume the Giants will decline that option and essentially turn the remainder of the 24-year-old's deal into a "prove it" one-year agreement. For now, Jones is recovering from a neck injury that prematurely ended his 2021 season and has him avoiding football-related contact until August.
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