New York Giants: What Daniel Jones said in the huddle to fuel his teammates

When New York Giants rookie quarterback Daniel Jones stepped into the huddle on what was the game-winning play against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, he was as poised as ever.

Having already rushed for one touchdown in the game and thrown for two more, Jones had a slew of choices he could make to pull ahead of the Buccaneers late in the fourth quarter. On fourth down, Jones entered the huddle and did something no player would have ever expected.

“(He) cussed one time,” wide receiver Russell Shepard said. “I ain’t never heard him scream. He started screaming and cussing. We were in the red zone and he was like, ‘Let’s f—ing score.’”

On the very next play, Jones ran for a seven-yard touchdown on a run-pass option that capped off an impressive drive that included a 36-yard pass to Sterling Shepard to set the Giants up at the 12-yard line.

“The fact that the did that (curse) was an eye-opener because we never seen him get out of his personality,” Shepard said. “He’s very mellow, very mild-mannered individual. He doesn’t get too high or too low. To see him get like that was pretty impressive. That was the thing that propelled us offensively to keep fighting.”

For a player like Jones to curse, it was not only surprising but needed for the players around him. His excitement clearly got the best of him and he will never live down the time he cursed in front of his teammates.

The Giants overcame an 18 point halftime deficit against Tampa, while Jones was the catalyst in regards to the comeback. He now has one accolade that Eli Manning failed to earn over his 15-year career that has included two Super Bowl wins, coming back from 18 points down.

Jones did it in his first start, completing 23 passes for 336 yards. He also led the Giants in rushing with 4 carries for 28 yards and two scores. Overall, it was an incredible performance from the rookie against one of the NFL’s up and coming defenses. He not only put up over 30 points but he also nearly totaled the point production from the first two games with Manning under center.

It is becoming clear that Jones is the future and will be starting for the remainder of the season. He managed to put his team on his back and carry them to victory — that’s something we haven’t seen in quite some time.