Tag: Daniel Jones

Mark Schlereth on Daniel Jones benching: ‘This is why the Giants suck’

Mark Schlereth slammed the New York Giants for their handling of the QB situation, saying they “suck” and calling them a “clown show.”

The New York Giants are once again the laughingstock of the NFL and their demotion of quarterback Daniel Jones hasn’t gone over like they had hoped.

Players are angry and confused with the decision, while experts and analysts from around the league continue to criticize general manager Joe Schoen and head coach Brian Daboll’s handling of the situation.

In the mind of retired NFL offensive lineman and current FS1 analyst Mark Schlereth, this is just another example of a failing franchise.

“This is why the Giants suck,” he said on Tuesday. “Drew Lock has been your backup quarterback for the entirety of the season, right? He was the guy, if Daniel Jones was going to get hurt, he was the guy that was going in. He was good enough to do that for you for the entirety of this season.

“But as soon as you decide to bench Daniel Jones, you decide to go with the sideshow, Tommy Cutlets. Because why? Because your fan base will be excited?”

Schlereth also believes the decision to leapfrog Drew Lock in favor of Tommy DeVito, which some believe was done for financial reasons, will repel free agent players in the future.

“Like, to me, this is the biggest issue. You’re a bad franchise. You need to attract free agents to come to your franchise,” he said. “If I’m a free agent player, and all things being equal from a money standpoint, I look at this clown show versus some other team… I’m not going to the Giants. That’s a clown show.

“That guy worked all year to be the backup to get his opportunity. He signed there to have an opportunity because he knew Daniel Jones was questionable and at the 11th hour you decide, ‘no, we’re going to go with (DeVito).'”

Of course, Schlereth didn’t actually say “DeVito.” Instead, he mimicked circus music with a background overlay to really hammer home how much of an embarrassment the Giants have become.

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Giants player blasts ‘weak’ demotion of Daniel Jones, calls it ‘trash’

Cracks are forming and New York Giants players are talking with one claiming the demotion of QB Daniel Jones was “trash” and “weak as —-.”

Cracks are beginning to form in the New York Giants’ foundation and players are starting to get a little loud.

On Tuesday, it was reported that general manager Joe Schoen is not well-liked among some players in the Giants’ locker room, particularly after his handling of cornerback Nick McCloud’s release.

There have also been some eyebrow-raising social media interactions with certain players “liking” comments made by ex-Giants running back Saquon Barkley and a curious comment made by wide receiver Darius Slayton, which he attempted to explain away.

While those issues are subtle, defensive captain Dexter Lawrence was anything but when asked about the benching of quarterback Daniel Jones.

“A little bit of confusion,” Lawrence said, via The Athletic. “(Brian Daboll) just said it was a hard decision. I’m sure it’s hard. He’s the QB1. To me, the best quarterback on the team. But they see things differently. I guess that’s all that matters.

“Teams lose games, not just one player, and I think that should be understood.”

Lawrence is not the only person who feels that way. An anonymous offensive player spoke with NFL insider Jordan Schultz and sounded off on the demotion of Jones.

“We’re not idiots. They did it because of money. So be it. But Daniel has been all class, never complained, and is now being completely disregarded. The team record is bad. You can point fingers everywhere,” the player said. “To try to blame him is trash, and making him third string is weak as (expletive).”

Schultz added that several other players have also expressed their “disappointment” in the decision.

The ship hasn’t sunk but it’s certainly taking on water. Once players begin to gripe — especially team captains — it’s nearly impossible to reel things back in.

Schoen and head coach Brian Daboll are on the verge of losing the locker room and if that happens, there’s nothing co-owners John Mara and Steve Tisch will be able to do to save them — even if that would be their preference.

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Giants’ Dexter Lawrence on Daniel Jones benching: ‘It’s tough’

New York Giants NT Dexter Lawrence is confused by the demotion of QB Daniel Jones, saying it’s “tough” to see his “best friend” benched.

The New York Giants have found themselves in a situation they never wanted to be part of. Head coach Brian Daboll had some positive momentum after his first season leading Big Blue, but he and general manager Joe Schoen have done nothing but go downhill ever since then.

In their latest bid to keep their jobs, Daboll and Schoen decided to move Daniel Jones to QB3. But instead of Drew Lock taking over, as many would assume given his signing this offseason, they are giving the nod to Tommy DeVito.

Even Giants fan favorite Dexter Lawrence is confused by the decision and doesn’t necessarily agree with it, although he says he will respect the team’s decision.

“You’ve got to respect it as a player even though you don’t like it,” Lawrence said, via The Athletic. “That’s my best friend. It’s tough for that to happen. I can’t control it. They made the decision based off their evaluations and their thoughts and feelings. … That’s my boy. As a player, you got to keep playing. As a human and as a brother, I feel for him.”

Sure, as a player, you have to respect the decision. You don’t really have a say in it anyway. Daboll and Schoen are your bosses in a sense and players don’t have much of a say in anything. And it likely is hard to watch someone you care about take the brunt of all criticism.

But Lawrence also said it was confusing; that no one really understood what happened.

“A little bit of confusion,” he added. “(Brian Daboll) just said it was a hard decision. I’m sure it’s hard. He’s the QB1. To me, the best quarterback on the team. But they see things differently. I guess that’s all that matters.

“Teams lose games, not just one player, and I think that should be understood.”

The lack of transparency from the administration to the players in this situation is just another indication of how far estranged the regime has become from the locker room.

Despite co-owner John Mara publicly standing behind Schoen and Daboll, it’s about time they got ahead of this problem and began distancing themselves from this regime. It’s not working, and the sooner ownership realizes it, the sooner this organization can move forward.

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Would it make sense for Daniel Jones to be a Viking in 2025?

That raises the question: Would another reclamation project make sense for the Vikings?

The Minnesota Vikings signed Sam Darnold this offseason as a bridge option to start while they developed a rookie quarterback. The team secured the rookie, J.J. McCarthy, and everyone expected him to be the guy with Darnold having such low expectations.

What happened with Sam Darnold was that he played like a completely different player, and Kevin O’Connell got a lot of the credit for that. That raises the question: Would another reclamation project make sense for the Vikings?

The Giants announced they were benching Daniel Jones after his shaky efficiency and 24-44-1 record as a starter. He has the physical tools but never quite developed the mental ones to achieve much with the Giants.

The team isn’t likely to retain Sam Darnold, considering the contract he has likely earned himself, but replacing him with Jones to back McCarthy could work. For Jones, who better to work with than the guy who turned Sam Darnold into a fringe MVP candidate through the first five weeks of the season?

This could be a fun idea for all parties involved.

Desperate Giants hope to change narrative by playing the ‘Cutlets Card’

The New York Giants are desperate and dishonest, and now they’re playing their last hand — the Cutlets Card — in hopes of what, exactly?

These are desperate times for the New York Giants. After another 2-8 start, they finally canned their underperforming quarterback, Daniel Jones, in an effort to create “a spark.”

With the Northeast (and the Giants) in the throes of a historic drought, is that even a good idea?

Is putting hometown hero Tommy DeVito back under center really the answer at this point? Or is this a red herring to draw attention away from the many problems of this organization?

The Giants are benching Jones for reasons they won’t admit, most of them financial, but the reality is they need to change the conversation.

They can do that by elevating their young players into key roles. But, they’re already doing that. They can make a coaching change, but co-owner John Mara isn’t feeling that at the moment. He’s been through too many coaching changes over the past decade and has said he is not planning on another one.

So, the only card they have left to play is the Cutlets Card. DeVito, who has been the Giants’ emergency quarterback all year and has not played a single snap this season, was leapfrogged over Drew Lock and thrust into the starting role.

The Giants are actually leaning on the celebrity status of DeVito to salvage what’s left of this garbage can of a season. That’s asking a lot of the Jersey product considering he is a player of limited ability.

Don’t get us wrong. DeVito is a legitimate NFL-level talent, but not as a starter. He was in the right role up until Monday which is as a third-string, emergency quarterback.

The Giants’ decision to turn back to DeVito is a clear indication they are out of ideas. They are desperate and there’s nothing that chaps Mara’s britches more than his team playing meaningless football in November in front of clusters of empty seats.

The Giants still have four home games remaining this season. They are hoping to capitalize on DeVito — the colorful former Don Bosco Prep star who burst onto the scene last year after Jones and backup Tyrod Taylor both got injured — creating some positive buzz.

The only issue here is that they’ve already played this card. It worked for a while and then it faded out. They are in such dire straits that they have no other cards to play. Sad.

DeVito played surprisingly well at times last season, compiling a 3-3 record with eight touchdowns against three interceptions, but his performance was not without warts.

DeVito had a knack for making plays, yes, but he also looked like a deer in the headlights on most snaps. His sack rate of 17.2 percent was unnerving. By comparison, former Jets bust Zach Wilson’s sack rate was a much lower 12.1 percent and it seemed like he was ravaged on every play.

But this is where the Giants are right now. Playing out the string and hoping a franchise quarterback somehow falls into their lap next March or April.

There are seven games remaining this season. The Giants are 0-5 at home and could challenge for the franchise record for fewest home wins in a season (0-7, 1974) but this will be far worse.

In 1974, they were a mess and were playing their home games at the Yale Bowl. This season, they are a mess again and can best that infamous record by losing three of their four remaining home games.

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Report: ‘Growing sense’ that Giants’ Brian Daboll is ‘coaching for his job’

There is reportedly a “growing sense” around the league that New York Giants coach Brian Daboll is “coaching for his job” down the stretch.

Less than a month after getting a vote of confidence from ownership, New York Giants head coach Brian Doboll is apparently very much on the hot seat.

NFL insider Jordan Schultz reports that there’s a growing sense Daboll is “coaching for his” job over the final seven games.

Daboll met with the media via Zoom on Monday to discuss the team’s decision to bench quarterback Daniel Jones and insert hometown hero Tommy DeVito into the starting role.

Daboll said, “a decision that we needed to make here and try to spark things, change things up. We went and did it with Tommy.”

It was suggested that the switch was made for financial reasons rather than football ones as general manager Joe Schoen had suggested they would be made going forward in his presser last week.

“I understand your question,” Daboll said. “Again, our conversations will be private. We have plenty of them. Looking forward to Tommy getting ready here to go against Tampa.”

It’s just the latest of several sudden decisions the team has made this season when it comes to personnel.  There seems to be mixed messages being sent throughout the different levels of the organization to which the response is always that there is constant communication between ownership and the rank and file.

Daboll has also put more pressure on himself this season by assuming the offensive play-calling. The Giants have been the lowest-scoring team in the NFL through 11 weeks.

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Giants bench Daniel Jones ahead of matchup with Bucs in Week 12

The Giants benched Daniel Jones in favor of Tommy DeVito and Drew Lock. Jones will now be third on the depth chart behind DeVito and Lock. 

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers and New York Giants were both on their Bye Week this past Sunday. While one team worked on healing up, the other made a quarterback change, and it wasn’t the Bucs.

The New York Giants are making a quarterback change ahead of their matchup on Sunday against the Bucs. They are benching Daniel Jones in favor of Tommy DeVito and Drew Lock. Jones will now be third on the depth chart behind DeVito, who will start, and Lock.

Adam Schefter of ESPN reported the move early on Monday morning.

In his siz years in the NFL, after the Giants drafted him in the first round of the 2019 NFL Draft, Jones has a record of 24-44-1. The Giants this year have the lowest scoring offense with 15.6 points per game so they hope this change can bring life to the team.

For the Bucs, though, it allows a secondary that has been struggling to go against a softer challenge. DeVito, in six games last year, was 3-3 and averaged less than 200 yards passing a game.

Giants’ Brian Daboll going with Tommy DeVito to ‘create a spark’

New York Giants coach Brian Daboll says he’s going with Tommy DeVito as QB1 to “create a spark” after he was a healthy scratch for 10 games.

On Monday, the New York Giants officially benched quarterback Daniel Jones, demoting him to the QB3 spot, effectively ending his career in East Rutherford.

It was a move many saw coming after a Week 10 debacle in Germany against the Carolina Panthers but one that was followed by a more controversial decision.

Instead of moving Drew Lock into the starting role and using Tommy DeVito as his backup, the Giants instead promoted DeVito to QB1 in order to create a spark.

“After evaluating a bunch of things and looking at a lot of tape and being around Tommy last year where he created a little bit of a spark for us, that’s the reason why we’re going with Tommy,” head coach Brian Daboll told reporters.

“Drew will be the backup. Continue to work with him. He’s been nothing but a pro and as was Daniel. It’s never an easy conversation to have with the players. But felt like this was a necessary move for us and look forward to working with Tommy and getting him ready to go against Tampa.”

Daboll refused to elaborate on why Jones was demoted to QB3 and will be inactive for the remainder of the season, but the reasons are obvious. There’s an injury clause and a $23 million guaranteed salary in 2025 hanging over their heads. Admitting that would cause some issues with the NFLPA, so the coach attempted to thread a needle with his comments.

Everyone can accept that answer with a wink and a nod. We know.

But why DeVito over Lock, who was handed a one-year, $5 million contract during the offseason? After all, DeVito has been a healthy scratch for the past 10 games.

Pressed further, Daboll said after evaluating the film, they suddenly discovered that DeVito was their best quarterback.

“I wanted to take our time and watch a lot of tape. Not just this year’s, last year’s, some other things, too. And try to make the best decision we can make for our team. That’s what I did,” he said.

Uh-huh. We’re sure it has nothing to do with the potential escalators in Lock’s contract or the fact that the Giants have the third-least remaining cap space in the NFL. It was just a “football decision.”

If that were true, one must wonder how the Giants failed to recognize this over their first 10 games.

Jones is likely to be cut after this season, Lock will become an unrestricted free agent, and DeVito will become an exclusive rights free agent. It’s entirely possible — if not plausible — that none of the three return.

“We’re just focused here on this week and the decision that we made to get these guys ready to go. That’s where our focus is,” Daboll said when asked about the future of Jones and the other quarterbacks.

The irony is that DeVito was probably the best choice but how the Giants have handled him thus far, Lock’s contracts and Daboll’s answers make it a spectacle. It casts doubt on general manager Joe Schoen and Daboll and their ability to properly evaluate quarters. It also calls into question their ability to handle contracts and personnel. After all, this is far from the first time personnel decisions have raised an eyebrow.

And what if DeVito, who will play behind an improved offensive line compared to his last time on the field, actually goes out and wins? It might save the regime but cost them a chance at a true franchise quarterback.

Even when the current Giants regime makes the right move, they find a way to muck it up. And that can not make co-owners John Mara and Steve Tisch happy.

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Around the NFL: Former Seahawks QB Drew Lock now primary backup in NY

Around the NFL: Former Seahawks QB Drew Lock now primary backup in NY

Early on Monday morning, it was announced the New York Football Giants were making a long overdue change at quarterback. Daniel Jones, who has been the starter (when healthy) since he entered the league in 2019, has been benched. No, that’s not accurate. Not entirely.

Daniel Jones is no longer the starter, and he is not even the backup. He is now outranked by former Seattle Seahawks backup Drew Lock. Jones has been passed up in favor of both Tommy DeVito, who is now the starter, and Lock, who signed a a one-year deal with the Giants this offseason.

From 2022-2023, Drew Lock was a Seahawk. He started two games in absence of Geno Smith due to injury, and performed quite well in relief. He likely parlayed his stellar performance on MNF last season into extending his career in the league with the aforementioned extension. Given how much quarterback Daniel Jones has struggled in every single year of his career aside from the 2022 season when he wasn’t completely awful, it made sense the Giants would want to bring in some insurance behind him. Of course, the irony is now Lock is the insurance for Tommy DeVito.

Last year, in relief of the injured Jones, Tommy DeVito started six games and won three of them. He threw eight touchdowns against only three interceptions, but did not have one in either of his last two starts – both of which were losses. However, DeVito’s eight touchdown passes last year in six games equal the amount of touchdowns Daniel Jones has thrown in 2024.

It was beyond time for New York to move on from Jones, who somehow managed to stay the starter far past the point he should have been benched. In a league where teams are quicker than ever to move on from young quarterbacks, Jones was inexplicably allowed to start 69 games, compiling a record of 24-44-1. In 2022, Jones somehow helped guide the Giants to a 9-6-1 record, and even won a Wild Card playoff game. He only had 15 touchdown passes that year, but apparently that was more than good enough for New York to give him a four-year, $160 million extension.

Unfortunately, with Jones being benched so far deep on the depth chart, this likely means his final win of the season was in Week 5 against… the Seattle Seahawks, where two of his eight touchdown passes on the season were thrown in the 29-20 victory at Lumen Field. Incredibly annoying.

I will conclude with one more note about Drew Lock. For all the talk about how Giants head coach Brian Daboll is some “offensive mastermind,” he still isn’t able to get Lock to being a starting caliber player. Meanwhile, former Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll had Lock playing quality football in his two starts in 2023, including a heroic win on Monday Night Football.

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Giants’ Brian Daboll implies other personnel changes are coming

New York Giants head coach Brian Daboll hinted on Monday that the lineup changes could go beyond the quarterback position this week.

New York Giants head coach Brian Daboll officially announced the team’s intention to make a change at quarterback going forward on Monday during a Zoom conference call.

Daniel Jones will no longer be the starter and has been relegated all the way down the depth chart to the No. 3 spot.

Drew Lock will remain the primary backup while third-stringer Tommy DeVito, who hasn’t played a snap since the preseason, has been elevated to the starting role beginning this Sunday at home against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

The changes may not end there. Daboll intimated that there could be more lineup adjustments at other positions coming this week.

“Personnel groups offensively or defensively, a lot less than this, obviously, where you just see the quarterback situation. But there’ll be different guys mixing in and out and we’ll take a look at some of these guys that have done a nice job since they’ve been here,” he said. “Maybe they haven’t had as many reps or we implement them into some personnel groups. That’s what we’ll do here over the next couple of days when we get ready for Tampa is to decide where these guys fit.”

Daboll did not offer any specifics on those comments but the reality is, there’s not much the team hasn’t tried this season.

All six of their drafted rookies have seen significant playing time and injuries up and down the roster have also given a good portion of the backups a chance to get on the field as well.

One possibility is along the offensive line where they could try to get rookie Jake Kubas some more work. Some changes at wide receiver could also be made with Darius Slayton likely headed to free agency after the season.

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