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Will the Giants bench Daniel Jones? New York ready to stick with struggling QB

nick brinkerhoff, usa today
·5 min read

Big Blue has some big problems. Halloween is only a few days away, and much like their MetLife Stadium roommates, the season is essentially over. There have been many lowlights for New York football over the years, but it's not often that the baseball season is still going on in the Big Apple before declaring the Giants and Jets time of death.

However, there are still games to be played, jobs to be won or lost, and seemingly meaningless wins to stack, but the Giants know that their roster doesn't have an answer to football's biggest question. Who will be the quarterback?

Even with that clear problem, New York is riding with Daniel Jones, for better or worse. Will that change soon? That remains anyone's guess, but the long-term answer is much clearer.

Will the Giants bench Daniel Jones?

Despite benching Jones in Week 7, the Giants appear ready to stick with their struggling quarterback. According to ESPN's Jordan Raanan, Jones took all the first-team reps this week at practice ahead of their Week 8 "Monday Night Football" matchup against the Pittsburgh Steelers. He added that the six-year veteran isn't expected to be on a short leash.

Following the blowout loss to the Eagles, head coach Brian Daboll notably defended Jones after the benching and explained why he would remain the starter.

“I think he gives us the best chance, number one,” Daboll said. “I thought there were a lot of plays that he did exactly what he needed to do, and then look, there were some plays where it wasn’t just on Daniel [Jones]. It was a collection of things. It wasn’t just one person, a protection, or a route.”

That won't be music to the ears of Giants fans, who have watched the team play to a 31-58-1 record since Jones arrived in 2019. That's good enough for the second-worst record in the league over that span. Only the Jets are worse at 29-62.

The Giants have been to the playoffs twice in the 12 seasons since winning Super Bowl 46. However, plagued by bad rosters, coaching changes, and other issues, Big Blue is a long way from its glory days.

Jones is just the latest chapter in a disappointing book. New York's appearance on the offseason edition of HBO's "Hard Knocks" made it quite clear that general manager Joe Schoen is looking to move on. While Schoen is the one that inked Jones to the long-term contract extension, he might be forced to turn the page earlier than he initially thought.

NFL BACKUP QB RANKINGS: Ranking NFL backup QB situations: Which teams have best, worst contingency plans?

Giants QB depth chart

Here's a look at the Giants current QB depth chart:

Lock has been around the proverbial NFL block a few times and has remained a backup for most of his six seasons. Like Jones, the former Missouri signal-caller was also drafted in 2019. Lock ended up going in the second round to the Denver Broncos. Most importantly, it's unlikely he would develop into a long-term option at this stage of his career. The best argument for switching to Lock is that he isn't Jones.

As for the man they call "Tommy Cutlets," DeVito won't claim the starting gig unless injuries mount. The third-stringer was thrust into the starting role last season for six games and posted a 3-3 record. He brought magic to the swamps of New Jersey and united the Italian community in ways that only HBO's "The Sopranos" could previously.

That eventually fizzled out, but not before DeVito's family treated the MetLife faithful to some delicious tailgate scenes. If nothing else, the local kid could help bring people to the stadium as the fans spend their hard-earned cash elsewhere.

While neither option is particularly great, the G-Men might have no choice but to bench Jones at some point and protect their future salary cap beyond this season.

Daniel Jones contract

Perhaps the most complicated part of this situation is the contract.

Jones carries a $23 million injury guarantee into 2025, which the team would likely want to avoid. That reality might be the thing that sends the quarterback to warm the bench. It's not a foreign concept around the league, either, with the Broncos and Raiders holding Russell Wilson and Derek Carr out of action in recent years to prevent those hefty bonuses from triggering.

If the Giants decided to part ways with an uninjured Jones in the offseason, the team would carry a dead cap of around $22.2 million, according to Spotrac.

Daniel Jones stats

Jones has led the Giants to a record of 24-41-1 across 66 career starts, posting 68 touchdowns to 44 interceptions.

He hasn't met the expectations for someone drafted with the No. 6 overall pick.

While Big Blue's ineptitude doesn't fall entirely on Jones, he hasn't been able to lift the team around him. He has been sacked 200 times over six seasons, the third-worst in the league since 2019. All those hits have resulted in plenty of injuries, forcing Jones to miss at least one game each season.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Will the Giants bench Daniel Jones? New York sticking with QB