Watching New York Giants rookie quarterback Daniel Jones pry himself off the grass in Gillette Stadium on Thursday was not something any of us wanted to witness. The offensive line might have played well, but the offense was one dimensional without three playmakers in Saquon Barkley, Sterling Shepard, and Evan Engram.
Jones not having his biggest threats on offense undoubtedly hurt the productivity and efficiency of the unit, but general manager Dave Gettleman put him in a terrible position and could’ve seriously got him hurt.
Why? Because he elected to save a penny and toss rookie practice squad running back Jon Hilliman into a hostile environment against one of the best defenses the league has seen in a decade.
Before the game began on Thursday, the Patriots hadn’t allowed a passing touchdown through five weeks of the regular season, until the Golden Tate 64 yard juggling catch broke that impressive record.
Jones was under duress for a good portion of the game simply because of how good the Patriots coverage was in the secondary.
The New York Giants finally make a move, but it’s too late:
On Friday, the Giants signed Javorius Allen to help at running back as they elected to waive Jon Hilliman. The simple reality is, his 38 yards on 11 carries wasn’t enough to justify keeping him on the roster. Also, he allowed a timely fumble recovered for a touchdown in the fourth quarter with the Giants down one possession. This put the game out of reach and was a blow to the head for a team that battled throughout the game on defense.
My biggest concern was the risk of injury in regards to Jones. On the fumble recovery, Jones ran down Kyle Van Noy and dove headfirst into his legs, which could’ve caused a severe injury. That was at the expense of Hilliman’s fumble, and cutting him should’ve happened weeks ago. The Giants brought in several veteran free agents to work out with the intention of helping the running back unit, but unfortunately, Gettleman decided that he didn’t need any support, despite Jones being without several influencers on offense.
Understanding this move and logic is quite tricky because they signed a veteran running back anyway but waited two weeks too long to do so, only a week and a half before Saquon Barkley is expected to make his return against the Arizona Cardinals. We can only hope Gettleman learns from this potentially devastating mistake.