Daniel Jones Lands on New List of Top 10 QBs with Most to Prove in 2024

Daniel Jones is facing a pivotal year ahead as he looks to finally silence his critics.

Aug 24, 2024; East Rutherford, New Jersey, USA; New York Giants quarterback Daniel Jones (8) looks on prior to the game against the New York Jets at MetLife Stadium. / Rich Barnes-USA TODAY Sports

New York Giants quarterback Daniel Jones is entering the 2024 season under a microscope. Every play of his will be judged with an eye on whether he’s truly worthy of being the Giants’ starting quarterback of the future, which was enough evidence to land him on CBS Sports Cody Benjamin’s list of the top ten quarterbcks with the most to prove in 2024.  

Benjamin notes how the Giants spent all of the offseason trying to replace Jones via the draft, only to fail in engineering a trade that would enable them to do so. That they weren’t able to replace Jones puts him right back on the hot seat as he looks to prove he can be the quarterback he was in 2022 when he led the Giants to the postseason.

Benjamin points to the presence of first-round draft pick Malik Nabers as a potential saving grace for Jones’s chances of dyeing the odds. But that, of course, remains to be seen as Nabers, a rookie, can only do so much to help Jones.

In taking into account other reasons why Jones came in at No. 8 on the list, Benjamin noted the injury factor. Last season, Jones suffered a torn ACL in his right knee, leaving him out for the second half of the season. He has also missed several games due to his second neck injury in three years.

What is likely the most significant factor in Jones’s landing on this list could be his contract.   

After signing a four-year, $160,000 contract in 2023, Daniel Jones ties with Dak Prescott of the Cowboys and Matthew Stafford of the Lions as the in the NFL. With a contract this high, coaches and fans expect him to prove his worth this season.

In the six games Jones did play last season, he threw just two touchdowns to six interceptions and was sacked 30 times, leading to the worst QBR rating of his career (70.5).

Jones has proved he can step up to the plate. During the 2022 season, he led the team to a 9-6-1 record. This was the first time the Giants reached the postseason since 2016.

But Jones has shown flashes of being a quarterback with whom the Giants can win. In 2022, he recorded his highest passer rating (92.5) in 2022, ranking seventh in team history and falling just under Eli Manning's rating in 2015. 

So clearly, Jones can make an impression. And maybe it’s been a matter of him never having a competent offensive line, number one receiver, and a solid running game, all of which he has going into this season, along with head coach Brian Daboll taking over the plays.

If Jones can’t flourish with all these positives around him, then the Giants will have no choice but to move on.  

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