The New York Giants are hoping that quarterback Daniel Jones takes a massive step forward and 2021, and based on his work ethic this off-season, their expectations are justified.
Management did very little to bolster the offense around Jones, giving him the proper weapons to utilize and protection in the trenches. Jones has been running for his life ever since been drafted in 2019, possessing one of the worst offensive lines in the NFL, specifically in pass blocking. If you remember the latter portion of Eli Manning’s career, you likely recall him being sacked frequently and the happy feet habit he developed due to constant pressure.
Jones has faced something similar the last two seasons, and while the Giants did little to upgrade their OL this off-season, they did provide more weapons, which should take blitzers out of the equation and force defenses to focus on coverage, playing more defensive backs. The additions of Kenny Golladay and Kadarius Toney should theoretically help Jones and take more pressure off of him, but he also has to improve his pocket awareness and mobility to lower his fumble totals and improve his efficiency throwing the ball.
Jones fumbled the football 18 times in his rookie season and cut that number down to 11 in 2020 over 14 games. He saw a significant step forward in that category, but it still represents a weakness in his game and something he needs to improve upon.
The Giants’ quarterback has been working with Mickey Brueckner of “Annex Sports†in Chatham, New Jersey.
https://twitter.com/mickbrueckner/status/1398639683710619649
What has Daniel Jones been doing to improve for the New York Giants?
Daniel has been working on improving his balance, with the center of his mass over his base, keeping his hips moving under his shoulders while keeping his upper body solid and still, and utilizing his feet to react and move quickly in the pocket.
All of these different factors should contribute toward a more successful 2021 season for Daniel, who primarily needs to progress with his pocket awareness and keeping the ball protected when defensive pass rushers come close. He’s had issues in the past keeping the ball away from his body and fumbling due to a lack of awareness and protection.
The only way for Jones to improve upon his weaknesses is to train during the off-season and create muscle memory, which is exactly what he’s been doing as training camp nears. I believe that this additional work will pay dividends, and while we need to see it applied to the football field before making any assumptions, there’s no question that Jones’s work ethic is on display.