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Six seasons in, the Giants still have a Daniel Jones problem
The Giants had chances to draft a first-round quarterback this year, but passed. Now they’re in last place and staring down another lost season with Daniel Jones under center.
Jones told reporters after the game that he was “frustrated” by his benching. He was not alone in feeling that way. Rookie wide receiver Malik Nabers told reporters that day that he “was open,” despite managing only four catches for 41 yards.
For the Giants, another season is slipping away. They’re in last place in the NFC East at 2-5 and will take a two-game losing streak into Monday night’s game in Pittsburgh. Jones is the NFL’s 26th-rated passer and the Giants are ranked 28th in the league in total offense. They’re averaging a feeble 14.1 points per game.
On draft night, the Giants chose sixth overall. Three prized quarterbacks already had been taken by that point — Caleb Williams at No. 1 by the Chicago Bears, Jayden Daniels at No. 2 by the Washington Commanders and Drake Maye at No. 3 by the New England Patriots. J.J. McCarthy, Michael Penix Jr. and Bo Nix remained available.
But the Giants went with Nabers. Penix went eighth to the Atlanta Falcons. McCarthy went 10th to the Minnesota Vikings. Nix went 12th to the Denver Broncos. That matched the draft record for quarterbacks selected in the opening round with six.
The Giants counted on Jones to come back from last season’s injury and be a franchise quarterback. To this point, it’s not working out.
In 54 seconds, Bill Belichick
— Questions Josh Ezeudu at LT
— Scoffs at OL rebuild
— Bites his tongue on Daniel Jones
— doesnt understand how #Giants let their best player got a couple million $ (suggesting he read reporting w/ numbers in @nypostsports)
pic.twitter.com/TSxHDRkLSS— Ryan Dunleavy (@rydunleavy) October 21, 2024
ESPN
What to do with Giants’ QB Daniel Jones?
The door is now cracked opened. New York Giants coach Brian Daboll tried to slam it shut after last week’s loss to the Philadelphia Eagles, but it won’t ever sit flush again — not now that he benched quarterback Daniel Jones in the fourth quarter Sunday.
The Giants (2-5) are in no-man’s land with their season and quarterback situation. While Jones reclaimed the starting job, it didn’t appear he was given any assurances about remaining the starter.
“I think after the game, he said to the team that I was the starter going forward,” Jones said. “So, I’m going through the week preparing to play and play well. But in terms of his plans, it’s a better question for him.”
At this point, remaining the starter for the rest of the season is in question.
Daboll was asked directly if he felt the need to provide Jones any reassurances.
“Yeah, I would say we’ve had conversations,” he said. “Those would be private conversations, and our focus is on getting ready to play Pittsburgh.”
So … no? It certainly wasn’t a yes.
It seems obvious the Giants are preparing to draft a quarterback next offseason. In the meantime, they have some options with Jones the remainder of the season.
Option 5: Let him play until playoff elimination
This is the scenario that probably best suits ownership, which doesn’t believe in tanking or not optimizing the team’s chances to win meaningless games. This would give the Giants their best chance to win games for most of the season before merging their desire to win with a seemingly obvious business decision.
They can’t risk Jones getting hurt and having to guarantee that $23 million if they are already out of playoff contention and playing strictly for pride.
Get Jones out, put him in a protective shell and give Lock or DeVito an opportunity to prove themselves the final few weeks of the season. That could keep everyone happy.
The early back page: EX-RATED
Read more: https://t.co/9yEwzzqd1K pic.twitter.com/ezKVy9yF1e
— New York Post Sports (@nypostsports) October 21, 2024
NFL.com
Cowboys elevating Dalvin Cook for Sunday’s game versus 49ers, RB to make his debut for Dallas
The Dallas running back is being elevated to the active roster for Sunday’s game versus the San Francisco 49ers, NFL Network Insider Tom Pelissero reported.
Cook has been on the practice squad since being signed by the team in August, with the expectation always being that he’d eventually join his teammates after a ramp-up period.
His addition comes at a moment when the Cowboys are in dire need of a spark in the ground game. The group led by Rico Dowdle (246 yards) and Ezekiel Elliott (115 yards) has not had much success in establishing the run so far, ranking last in the NFL in yards per game with 77.2 and in rushing touchdowns (2).
Blogging the Boys
Week 8 could bring a major swing in NFC East race
This is a big week for the NFC East.
Washington hosts the Chicago Bears, currently 4-2 and coming off three straight wins. But the Bears have had it easy lately with the Jaguars and Panthers as opponents, so they also need to prove something in this battle. The Commanders are still waiting to confirm QB Jayden Daniels’ status after a rib injury last Sunday, which could go a long way to deciding how this one goes.
The Eagles have won their last two since an early bye but they came against the Giants and Browns. They’ll now travel to Cincinnati, with the Bengals also having won two straight against those same two teams. Cincy is better than their 3-4 record might indicate, with two narrow losses against the Chiefs and Ravens dragging it down. They’re more than capable of winning this game and putting Philly within the Cowboys’ reach.
The problem for Dallas is that their own Week 8 opponent, the San Francisco 49ers, have been a major issue the last few years. The Niners have won three straight against the Cowboys, two of them playoff games and the last one a 42-10 blowout. With neither Micah Parsons nor DaRon Bland returning this week, even with Frisco’s own injuries, Dallas seems ill-equipped to exercise this particular demon.
We’ll know the divisional stakes before kickoff. If either the Commanders or Eagles fall in their games, let alone both, it sweetens the deal for Dallas if they can get the road win. At the very least, it would provide some cushion against a loss. But if Washington and Philadelphia win their games, it could give a struggling Cowboys team a deeper hole to climb out of.
Bleeding Green Nation
Tee Higgins injury update: “Real chance” Bengals wide receiver misses Eagles game
Here’s some bad news for the Cincinnati Bengals ahead of their Week 9 game against the Philadelphia Eagles, per NFL insider Dan Graziano:
Per sources, there’s a real chance Bengals WR Tee Higgins, who injured his quad in Friday’s practice, has to miss Sunday’s game against the Eagles. The Bengals are planning to go right up until game time before deciding, but there’s pessimism about his chances to play.
Higgins was officially ruled questionable to play on Friday’s injury report. We’ll see if he’s suiting up or not for sure when inactives are announced at 11:30 AM Eastern on Sunday morning.
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Pro Football Talk
Jets release Takk McKinley to make room for Haason Reddick on 53-man roster
The Jets announced that they released McKinley on Saturday to make room for the veteran edge rusher on the 53-man roster. McKinley was a 2017 Falcons first-round pick and he signed with the Jets this offseason after a tryout at their minicamp.
McKinley had 9 tackles and a half-sack while appearing in the first seven games of the season.