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Daniel Jones Drops Eight Spots in The Athletic's Annual Quarterback Rankings

Daniel Jones apparently has a lot of work to do to make believers out of some around the league.

Patricia Traina

Daniel Jones Drops Eight Spots in The Athletic's Annual Quarterback Rankings
Daniel Jones Drops Eight Spots in The Athletic's Annual Quarterback Rankings /
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Typically, a young NFL quarterback should be ascending during his rookie contract.

That, however, hasn't been the case for New York Giants quarterback Daniel Jones, who enters the final year of his rookie deal, having provided little clarity regarding whether he's the long-term answer.

Because of this uncertainty, some of which is Jones's doing, the Giants' signal caller dropped from Tier 3 to Tier 4 in The Athletic's annual preseason quarterback rankings, where Jones finished 30th among his peers.

Overall, the consensus of the league personnel Sando spoke to about Jones is that the former Duke star is a good guy with talent who has obviously been in a bad situation for the bulk of his career.

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The same people Sando spoke with also questioned if Jones would be able to rise in the rankings, even under the tutelage of head coach Brian Daboll and offensive coordinator Mike Kafka--this due to a major question about his game that has existed since his college years at Duke.

“That kid holds the ball too long in the pocket, which leads to turnovers," a defensive coach told Sando. "I don’t think he sees the game great. I like (Brian) Daboll, so maybe that will change. I just don’t see it with that kid.”

According to the Pro Football Focus Quarterback Annuals, Jones has thrown to his first read in most of his career passing attempts. But the more time Jones has in the pocket, the less accurate he becomes.

Per PFF's data, Jones has a career average 79.3 percent on-target rating when he throws the ball in 2.5 seconds or less and a 68.2 percent on-target rating when he has 2.6 seconds or more to throw.

Last season, Jones was on target on 80.7 percent of his throws when getting the ball out in two seconds or less. That number fell to as low as 67.6 percent on pass attempts between 2.6 seconds to 3.0 seconds.

This data, combined with the eye test, has led to speculation regarding Jones's feel for the game and if he's trusting what he sees or is simply overthinking the situation. It's also fair to wonder if some of the Giants' offensive woes--the lack of yards after the catch and the need for the offensive line to hold blocks longer directly result from Jones's processing time.

So far, Daboll and Kafka have emphasized getting the ball out of Jones’s hand quickly and letting the receivers do all the heavy lifting. They have also implemented more pre-snap motion, which can help a quarterback get an early idea of what the defense might be planning to run and hence cut down on processing time.

The team will take its deep shots at strategically placed moments. Still, the hope seems to be that with explosive receiving options like Kadarius Toney, Wan’Dale Robinson and running back Saquon Barkley getting the chance to work in space, the offense will be turbocharged.

All that said, Sando's unnamed contributors' consensus is that Jones isn’t the long-term answer for the Giants.

“I think his hope may be going somewhere else, taking a year off and trying to get himself restarted,” an evaluator told Sando.

“There is enough talent there, enough intangibles there. He has certainly proven his physical toughness. He was just in a bad, bad situation: offensive line, receivers, coaching was a mess. If nothing else, maybe he can give them a year or two to find their guy because he is professional, he is tough, he is respected in the locker room because of the toughness.”

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Patricia Traina
PATRICIA TRAINA

Patricia Traina has covered the New York Giants for 30+ seasons, and her work has appeared in multiple media outlets, including The Athletic, Forbes, Bleacher Report, and the Sports Illustrated media group. As a credentialed New York Giants press corps member, Patricia has also covered five Super Bowls (three featuring the Giants), the annual NFL draft, and the NFL Scouting Combine. She is the author of The Big 50: The Men and Moments that Made the New York Giants. In addition to her work with New York Giants On SI, Patricia hosts the Locked On Giants podcast. Patricia is also a member of the Pro Football Writers of America and the Football Writers Association of America.

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