What’s worse for the New York Giants? Watching their NFC East rivals the Washington Commanders win games behind the talent of dynamic rookie Jayden Daniels? Or knowing things could be different if only they’d listened to head coach Brian Daboll and tried to trade up to take the quarterback in the 2024 NFL draft?
Well, one Giants reporter thinks he knows what’s worse after seeing Daniels produce a miraculous, Hail-Mary throw to beat the Chicago Bears in Week 8. As Dan Duggan of The Athletic put it, “If only.”
Duggan used those two words to caption a clip from HBO’s Hard Knocks (h/t The 33rd Team) showing Giants general manager Joe Schoen asking Daboll and others about Daniels. Schoen asked, “Daniels. Have you guys seen enough that you would trade up for him?” To which Daboll replied, “Daniels? Yeah, I would.”
Daboll’s desire went unmet and Schoen opted instead to again bet the farm on Daniel Jones. The Giants are 2-5, while the Commanders just moved to 6-2 after Daniels’ latest highlight.
Jayden Daniels Adding to Giants Regret
The sense of what if? must be growing for the Giants every week Daniels produces the spectacular. It’s what he did to leave the Bears reeling by heaving a deep ball eventually caught by Noah Brown as the clock ticked to zero at Northwest Stadium.
This 52-yard future permanent resident in the annals of NFL Films is far from the only special moment from Daniels this season. The Heisman Trophy winner at LSU has taken the pros by storm with a cool, unflappable demeanour and awesome athleticism.
Those qualities have even prompted some to tip Daniels to win league-wide MVP honors. It’s not such an outlandish theory when the second-overall pick this year has already broken records previously held by greats like six-time Super Bowl winner Tom Brady.
The rookie’s growing list of accolades and iconic moments are in sharp contrast to what the Giants are getting from their investment in Jones.
Daniel Jones Plan Means Giants Have Missed Opportunities
Schoen handed Jones a $160-million contract in 2023 to be a franchise quarterback. Things have hardly worked out that way, with injuries and turnovers wrecking last season for Jones.
The latter has continued to struggle in this campaign, even being sent to the bench in Week 7. Daboll is still backing Jones, but what else can he do after Schoen already set the direction at football’s most important position?
Maybe there was no way to change things. After all, the Commanders would have been unlikely to trade with a division rival and let them take Daniels, but there’s no doubt Daboll was impressed by the player after putting him through his paces at the annual Scouting Combine.
It’s also not as if Daniels was the only the only quarterback in this draft class who caught Daboll’s eye. The Giants wanted to know if the New England Patriots would trade out of the No. 3 spot instead of taking Drake Maye.
That didn’t happen either, so the Giants had to double down on Jones. Just as they had when Schoen paid the struggling signal-caller ahead of Saquon Barkley.
The two-time Pro Bowl running back is now dominating for the Giants’ division rival the Philadelphia Eagles. Barkley represents another what if? moment for Big Blue, but perhaps one that’s less painful than not going all in for Daniels.
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