There were a number of storylines for the New York Giants last season, but one of the ones that took the most attention was the transition from Eli Manning to Daniel Jones as the starting quarterback. There was never a question in anyone’s minds that the Giants drafted Jones to start, but the transition itself didn’t happen in the smoothest way – Manning started out the season as the number one player at the position and the Giants claimed to be committed to him before changing things up and starting Jones after the Giants began with back to back losses.
This season, though, that kind of thing isn’t a worry. We all know that Jones is the starter, and this time, he’s the starter from the very beginning of the year.
According to Eli, who spoke on SiriusXM NFL Radio about the subject, that will make things easier on Jones this year.
“I think it will be easier this year for him to kinda step up as that leader. Last year was probably awkward for him, me being there, me being in meeting rooms and just kinda the whole dynamic. Me being gone and hey, he is the quarterback, he is the guy, for him to have that control and the authority over receivers and offensive line,” Manning said.
“I think he’s proven to be tough and works hard, he’s done all the right things, he has gone in with that approach of keeping his head down and not saying more than he has to, working hard and earning the respect from the teammates,” Manning continued.
But just because Jones has a bigger voice on the team doesn’t mean it’s all going to be smooth sailing – Jones will also have to speak up more and be a leader, something which can rarely be trained.
“Now he can elevate that where now he’s in charge. The questions are coming to him from the coordinator, he’s gonna have to give his voice and his opinion on things.”
Jones will perhaps be under more pressure than anyone this season, thanks to the way the Giants have been setting him up as the starter since they drafted him. Many were willing to be soft on Jones at times when he didn’t perform well last season because of his rookie status and because of the bad luck and bad roster around him, but the Giants have made moves to improve Jones’ blocking and no longer have quarterback Eli Manning on the roster as competition.
As such, the team’s hopes in the passing game are riding on Jones exclusively. The only question is whether or not the sophomore slump will get to the second year player, or if 2019 was just a preview of Jones’ full skillset.