Giants Say No to Fifth-Year Option for Daniel Jones

The Giants informed quarterback Daniel Jones they will be declining his fifth-year option Thursday. That could mean a couple of things, although it isn't all bad.

Draft day started getting interesting when the New York Giants declined to pick up quarterback Daniel Jones’ fifth-year option, making him a potential free agent next March. There has been a lot of speculation about this since last season ended, but the Giants made it official Thursday. There are two ways this can be taken and it will be very intriguing to see how it plays out. This could be a move of “motivation,” or it is a sign that the Giants are ready to move on.

The Motivation Route

New York is once again in the midst of a regime change with the hiring of head coach Brian Daboll, the innovative offensive coordinator from Buffalo. He helped make a star out of Bills quarterback Josh Allen and that was the expectation for him and Jones. 

Jones has had an extremely inconsistent start to his career, so by declining his option, the challenge has been laid out. Now he has one year to prove to the new coach that he is the franchise quarterback, which could work in Jones' favor because if he proves himself, he then controls the re-signing process.

The Giants could choose to franchise tag Jones if has a substantially better season than he has had in years past. This would give him roughly $10 million more than if he were playing on the fifth-year option, and the Giants could work on an extension for him.

Moving On

The Giants have two picks in the top 10 Thursday night, so they have many options for what to do with the quarterback position. Do they use one of those picks on Kenny Pickett or Malik Willis? Do they trade back in the round and take a chance on someone like Sam Howell? Could they take Desmond Ridder later in the first round if they trade back, or even in the second round? 

Ridder’s play-style is a great fit for Daboll's offense and teams are falling in love with him during this process, so it would not be a surprising or bad move to make.