The New York Giants are sticking with Daniel Jones as their starting quarterback because he gives the team their best chance to win, says head coach Brian Daboll.
“I think he gives us the best chance, number one,” he told reporters on Monday. “I thought there were a lot of plays that he did exactly what he needed to do and then look, there were some plays where it wasn’t just on Daniel, it was a collection of things.
“It wasn’t just one person, protection, or a route. It was a collective deal, and we’ll sit here, we’ll watch the tape. We’ll do everything we can do to be better this week.”
The decision to stick with Jones is a risky one. Not only will it infuriate paying fans, but it puts at risk the team’s financial future.
With left tackle Andrew Thomas out for the season, the Giants’ offensive line has taken a major step back. Jones was hit 10 times and sacked seven in Sunday’s humiliating loss to the Philadelphia Eagles, and that doesn’t account for the additional damage he took as a runner.
Although Jones said he felt physically fine after the contest, the Giants are playing a very dangerous game in what’s now a lost season.
After this season, the Giants have an out in Jones’ four-year, $160 million contract — an option they will almost certainly exercise at this stage of the game. Cutting him would leave a dead cap hit of more than $22 million but would also free up over $19 million in cap space.
If the Giants designated Jones as a post-June 1 release, the cap savings would be over $30 million and the $22.21 million dead cap hit would be split equally over 2025 and 2026.
However, there is a “but.”
As ESPN’s Adam Schefter outlined back in September, there is an injury clause in Jones’ contract that would trigger if he gets hurt and is unable to pass an offseason physical.
The Giants also have a question they may need to eventually address regarding Jones, who has a $23 million injury guarantee for 2025 that becomes fully guaranteed if he gets injured and is unable to pass a physical in the offseason. In recent seasons, other NFL teams have benched quarterbacks to avoid triggering injury guarantees.
If that injury guarantee were to trigger, gone would be the out in Jones’ contract. The $23 million would be locked in and at least for one additional season, the Giants would be forced to keep Jones on the roster or absorb a massive financial hit.
At this point, general manager Joe Schoen and Daboll have very little to gain by keeping Jones on the field unless they feel as if their jobs are on the line.
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