The New York Giants might be able to win a Super Bowl without going out and getting another player to start at QB. But that’s only if they can put a good enough running game and defense around Daniel Jones to give him some help. At least, that’s the take that one talent evaluator told the New York Post.
The opinion is held by Dan Shonka, the general manager of the Ourlads Scouting Service. He says that, like in past years, it might be help from other areas like the defense that lets the Giants win a ring with Jones.
Is a title too much to ask for Daniel Jones?
“Yeah, I think he can. Quarterbacks, if they don’t make mistakes, if they don’t turn the ball over — yes, I think he can,” Shonka said when asked about whether Jones winning a title with the Giants would be possible. He mentioned that Eli Manning also won with talent and great defenses around him, rather than on his own.
“He’s gonna be a middle-of-the-road starting quarterback in the NFL, work his way into the 15-20 range. He’ll be a piece, I don’t think he’ll ever be a star that’s gonna carry a team. He’s got to have guys like Saquon Barkley and the receivers around him and have the running game,” Shonka continued.
The forecast isn’t what some Giants fans will want to hear. The NFL is an increasingly QB driven league, after all, and it’s not that easy to win a title with a mid tier quarterback. Many believe the Giants will be stuck in rebuilding unless they move on from Jones.
It looks like Texans QB Deshaun Watson will be on the move, and there’s been increased talk about the Giants QB situation this year as they may have a chance to acquire Watson and move on from Jones – if they can make it work with the cap.
A verdict on Jones
Turnovers have been a problem for Jones. And Shonka also mentioned that.
“I think he can be a really good game manager-type quarterback. What bothers me is he turns the ball over more than I remembered in college. Is he a turnover machine?” he said.
He also gave Jones some credit, however, but placed a high importance on the Giants having players around him.
“Daniel’s a smart guy, he’s a little more athletic than I gave him credit for coming out of Duke. He has a chance, but he’s got to have the team around him.”
The Giants have been making better personnel decisions over the past year or so, so having a talented team around Jones might not be so far away. But clearly, the clock is ticking. It’s been a while since the Giants were a playoff team. And most fans are getting impatient to see them get back to that spot.
Whether or not they do in 2021 will likely have a big impact on the ultimate verdict on Jones’ time with the franchise.