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The New York Giants offense has taken some steps back this season. First, they lost their best player (running back Saquon Barkley) in the second week of the season and never really embraced the system installed by first year offensive coordinator Jason Garrett.
That has led to the Giants having a dismal season on offense. Their 17.1 points per game average is second lowest in the NFL to only the Jets this season, as is their 297.7 yards per game.
The Giants overcame the loss of Barkley in the rushing game after totaling just 170 yards on the ground in their first three games, all losses. In eight of the next nine games, the Giants eclipsed over 100 yards rushing and posted a 5-4 record.
The last three weeks, they’ve been pretty much noncompetitive, losing decisively and averaging only 68.6 yards per game rushing.
In the thick of it all is second-year quarterback Daniel Jones, a player who might be miscast with the Giants. He can make the throws and can run both strategically and as needed.
So why are the Giants’ struggling so badly on offense? They have capable wide receivers and a Pro Bowl tight end. Their offensive line is far from the league’s worst.
Jones, who has been dealing with hamstring and ankle injuries the past few weeks, spoke to reporters about the offense and how he is dealing with the changes installed by Garrett, who some believe may not be back next season.
“Obviously, the terminology and learning how we’re going to call things, how we’re going to ID things from that standpoint,” said Jones. “My job pre-snap and post-snap is a little bit different in this system. But I think that’s something that we’ve gotten comfortable with and I’ve gotten comfortable with.
“Seeing certain plays, seeing certain concepts, being able to rep them and see them in live game action, learn from those reps and kind of take those mental notes or mental pictures to what you get in the game against certain plays and certain looks and being able to learn from that. I certainly feel comfortable where I am now and I’ve enjoyed learning it and working through it.”
Could’ve fooled us. He looks like a first round bust at the moment. Jones has just nine touchdown passes to go with nine interceptions in 13 starts. His QB rating is 78.9, 31st in the NFL. Translation: he might be comfortable but he’s not productive.
Jones was asked again what he meant by comfortable.
“I certainly feel like I’ve learned every week and I’ve improved every week,” he said. “I’m not sure that I think about my improvement and my progression and scope with reference to our offense and understanding the system. I think of it more as me as a player and as a second-year quarterback in this league learning and trying to improve.
“I felt comfortable in this offense this whole year. There certainly have been things I’ve learned and picked up on throughout the way. But as far as how I see my progression and my improvement, I’m not sure that I look at it based on being comfortable in the offense or anything specific to that necessarily.”
This is a league designed for offenses to score, and the Giants haven’t been able to do much of that. What would it look like if Jones wasn’t comfortable?
Whatever the case may be, Jones says he and the offense are “confident” in themselves going into a must-win Week 17 game against the Dallas Cowboys.
“We’re confident as an offense. We have to take advantage of our opportunities to score points, particularly when we get the ball in the red zone and move the ball down there. We’re certainly confident in our ability to do that and score points,” Jones said.
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