Giants Country

Giants QB Daniel Jones’s Deep-ball Struggles Holding Back Offense?

Jones's deep pass attempts have been woefully underthrown of late.

Patricia Traina

Sep 26, 2024; East Rutherford, New Jersey, USA; New York Giants quarterback Daniel Jones (8) reacts during the second quarter against the Dallas Cowboys at MetLife Stadium.
Sep 26, 2024; East Rutherford, New Jersey, USA; New York Giants quarterback Daniel Jones (8) reacts during the second quarter against the Dallas Cowboys at MetLife Stadium. / Brad Penner-Imagn Images
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The New York Giants have focused the last two seasons on adding speed to their receiving corps to achieve a deeper passing game and stretch the field.

However, according to The 33rd Team, one thing is holding the Giants back from becoming a legitimate deep downfield passing threat: Quarterback Daniel Jones.

According to The 33rd Team’s stats, Jones is 2 of 13 for 67 yards and one interception on deep passes of 20+ attempted air yards, a -0.03 EPA, and a 16.5 passer rating.

The 33rd Team’s assessment of Jones having struggled with the deep ball is backed up by Pro Football Focus’s metrics. Jones has a 20% completion rate on pass attempts of 20+ yards, putting him third among four quarterbacks who have attempted at least 15 deep passes, with two of his deep pass attempts classified as a “turnover-worthy play.” 

In digging deeper into Jones’s deep passing performance this season, one of his receivers dropped one of his pass attempts. Jones has also been under pressure on six deep attempts, tying him with Arizona’s Kyler Murray for the most pressured quarterback in the four-person sample. 

While some might conclude that Jones’s lack of accuracy on his deep throws results from being rushed to throw sooner than planned, PFF notes that Jones’s average time to throw on all his deep pass attempt dropbacks is 3.51, the second-best mark behind Murray.

Jones struggled with his deep pass attempts during training camp, overthrowing receivers, though against Dallas, he was badly underthrowing them. It has been over two months since camp started, and his deep ball accuracy continues to be an issue.

Head coach Brian Daboll, who has gone out of his way to praise Jones so far this season, did offer an indirect critique of the quarterback coming out of the Dallas loss when speaking about wide receiver Darius Slayton who finished with three catches for 56 yards, and who was targeted on two other Jones pass attempts–one of which was intercepted on a play in which the Cowboys were offside, thus negating the turnover–that was woefully off-target.

“I thought Slay (Darius Slayton) did a good job creating separation,” Daboll said on Friday. “He had a couple of opportunities. He could’ve had about five (receptions) for over a hundred (yards).” 

The Giants fan base and media continue to be split on whether TJones is the guy moving forward. Retired Giants running back Tiki Barber believes Jones is not the guy, as Jones has yet to show he can consistently load the team on his shoulders and carry it across the finish line. Given how Dallas could stifle the Giants’ rushing attack and dared Jones to try to beat them, Barber’s opinion appears to be spot on.

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Patricia Traina
PATRICIA TRAINA

Patricia Traina has covered the New York Giants for over three decades for various media outlets. She is the host of the Locked On Giants podcast and the author of "The Big 50: New York Giants: The Men and Moments that Made the New York Giants" (Triumph Books, September 2020). View Patricia's full bio.

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