The Giants are coming off a forgettable 4–13 season, and quarterback Daniel Jones will have a lot to prove as he heads into his 4th season while looking for a new contract under the new regime at MetLife Stadium.
Jones, the team’s 6th overall pick in the 2019 NFL Draft, is 25-years-old and heading into a season with a new coach in Brian Daboll (who comes to Big Blue after a stint as the defensive coordinator of the Buffalo Bills), along with a new offensive coordinator in Mike Kafka.
Still on his rookie deal, Jones is in a pivotal contract year that he’ll look to prove himself with the new coaches, along with a front office lead by rookie general manager Joe Schoen.
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Entering the league out of Duke, fans of the Giants had high hopes for the new passer, who took the reigns after years of stability at the position with Eli Manning, but he has posted less-than-stellar numbers in his first 3 years — boasting a career 62.8% completion rate and a 45-to-29 ratio of touchdowns to interceptions.
Jones and his new offensive coach Kafka met earlier this month, where they looked to bring down the passer’s propensity for turning the ball over, according to multiple reports.
“We watched all the fumbles and all the turnovers from Daniel and had an honest and open conversation about it. He understands what he needs to improve on in those certain situations,” Kafka said.
The Giants finished at the bottom of the NFC East last season, and Jones’ sup-bar play had much to do with their lackluster season — but Daboll and Kafka have committed to giving Jones a fair chance, while looking to put their current quarterback in a position to succeed.
“At the end of the day, the offense is obviously going to go through our quarterback and there’s got to be good give and take with that between the head coach, the coordinator and the quarterback,” said Daboll.
As for the rest of the team, the new coach spoke highly of the assembled roster in blue.
“I feel very good about where we are at in terms of the spring and what we’ve got accomplished,” Daboll said. “Thrown a lot at them. The guys have come in every day with really blinders on ready to work and get better and taking it day by day.”
If the quarterback can prove himself to be the long-term option at MatLife, the Giants will need to cough up big money to keep him from finding a home elsewhere in a new jersey.
Making matters worse for the upcoming contract negotiations, the Giants find themselves in a difficult cap situation, with the new regime in the front office cutting salary numbers wherever they can. That led to the release of star cornerback James Bradberry in May, along with rumors that the team could look to move fan-favorite running back Saquon Barkley.
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The G-Men did improve the offensive line this offseason, with a number of free agency signings and the selection of Evan Neal with the 7th overall pick in the most recent NFL draft, which is sure to be a significant boost for Jones, who was sacked by opposing defenses 22 times last season.
The team will open their season in a matchup against the Tennessee Titans on Sept. 11.
