There has never been any doubt about Daniel Jones’ ability to draw people around him together and win their trust. It happened in his freshman year.
Increasing the confidence the Giants have in him to win takes more time.
It’s no surprise that Jones this week defeated several Giants attacking players, wide receivers, tighthead props and even a few lineouts, to travel to Phoenix, Ariz, for a few days of throwing sessions, The Post confirmed. The training sessions from Monday to Friday – fully organized by Jones – will be the first unofficial work on the field before the 2021 season.
Teammates quickly went to Jones when he arrived in 2019 as an underrated first-round pick, considered the next in-line franchise fullback after Eli Manning.
A year ago, Jones arranged for a week of throwing and running trails in Texas, along with Colt McCoy, the veteran rugby quarterback, a former University of Texas star. Determine that the sessions will be much more advanced and beneficial this spring, as Jones and any returning attacking players all have a season of familiarity with attacking coordinator Jason Garrett’s system. Last spring, virtually the entire off-season program was held virtually, making it especially difficult for a sophomore quarterback to learn an entirely new offensive playbook.
Saquon Barkley, who performs rehabilitation work in Arizona, is expected to attend the sessions, though his recovery from a reconstructive knee surgery will not allow him to participate. Sterling Shepard will compete, as well as offensive lineouts Nick Gates and Will Hernandez.
Newly signed receiver Kenny Golladay is also expected to take part, making it the first time he and Jones have connected and felt each other on the field.
NFL teams may open their off-season programs on April 19, but these meetings will be virtual at the beginning.
This is a big season ahead for Jones. He is 8-18 as a starter, with a rating of 84.1 in his career and a second season (11 passes, 10 distinctions) that was a step up from his production (24 passes, 12 distinctions) as a rookie. The Giants spent this off-season in a hellish effort to find more weapons for Jones and they signed Golladay and John Ross, plus tighthead Kyle Rudolph.
Head coach Joe Judge and general manager Dave Gettleman recently both doubled down on their commitment and faith in Jones, as did co-owner John Mara.
“Listen, we think of Daniel’s world in this building,” Mara said last week. “We want to see him take the next step. I have no specific criteria except that we win a few more matches. I think he will have a better team around him this year than he had in previous years, and we definitely expect him to take the next step. I just want to see him improve because I think he needs to be a long-term winner in this league. ”
Golladay, after signing a $ 72 million four-year deal, said he considers Jones’ still fresh in the league ‘, adding:’ I feel he and I have some good can do things. ‘ Rudolph, who has to undergo foot surgery and is no longer employed this spring, called Jones “a stud” and went out on a limb when comparing his new teammate to a former NFL quarterback.
“He has all the intangible things to be an Andrew Luck quarterback,” Rudolph said. He spent his first ten NFL seasons with the Vikings. “Hopefully we put a lot of pieces around him and we can take the pressure off of him, just let him go play there and play with confidence and be able to take over all those qualities and abilities.”
Logan Ryan, the 30-year-old safety acquired last summer, has spent one season with Jones and believes the only ingredient Jones is short on is time in the league.
“I love Daniel,” Ryan said. ‘Daniel has everything he needs to be an elite full-back. The thing he needs is experience, and you can not rush it. I know we live in a society where we want results within one week. We want results in one year. He had his first starting year. He will learn from some of these mistakes. Sometimes you have to commit to learning from them.
‘Of course more will be expected of him like everyone else. I expect more of myself to be in the program for a full year. We expect Daniel to lead us to victories this year, and I believe he can do it. ”
It all starts this week in Arizona.