GIANTS TO REFUSE 5TH-YEAR OPTION ON DANIEL JONES AS HE FACES LIKELY ‘PROVE IT’ SEASON.
The move puts added pressure on Jones, who had a somewhat promising rookie season.
The New York Giants are not expected to pick up the fifth-year option on quarterback Daniel Jones’ contract, according to multiple reports.
The move, reported by the NFL Network, comes as the Giants have new leadership this year, with the signing of Joe Schoen as general manager and Brian Daboll as head coach.
Daboll helped in the development of Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen, and they both have expressed confidence in Jones, who now faces a likely prove it season in 2022.
The option had an estimated value of around $22 million, but if Jones plays well, the team could still award him with the franchise tag before signing him to a long-term deal. The Giants reportedly only have one quarterback, Tyrod Taylor, under contract for 2023.
“People are realizing it’s by far the most important position in sports and either you have one or you don’t,” co-owner John Mara told The New York Post late last month. “We think we have one.”
“We’ll see what happens this year but we have a lot of confidence in him,” Mara added. “I know Daboll and Joe love him. He’s got all the right tools, he’s got the right makeup, works his a– off, players respond to him so you want him to be successful.”
The move puts added pressure on Jones, who had a somewhat promising rookie season, throwing for 24 touchdowns and 12 interceptions after being selected No. 6 overall by the Giants in the 2019 NFL Draft.
But over the last two seasons, Jones has thrown for 21 touchdowns and 17 interceptions and hasn’t exactly looked like the franchise quarterback that the team expected him to be. He also fumbled the ball 36 times during his career and missed numerous games due to injury.
The move was reported just hours before the start of the 2022 NFL Draft. New York currently holds the No. 5 and No. 7 overall picks, and they could potentially select a quarterback in what has been deemed a weak draft for signal-callers.
In other news, the team announced it picked up the fifth-year option on lineman Dexter Lawrence, who was selected No. 17 overall after Jones in the 2019 NFL Draft.
Lawrence has totaled 145 tackles, nine sacks, and 30 quarterback hits during three seasons with the team. Unlike Jones, he is now under contract through the 2023 season.
