For the sixth time in seven seasons, the New York Giants have started the season at a grueling 0-2 start, showing virtually no signs of life on either side of the ball.
David Gettleman, who believed Eli still “had more in the tank”, paid him $23 million dollars to return this season in what many believed was his final shot to put together something manageable. After two games, Daniel Jones has been named the starter for Sunday at Tampa Bay.
Daniel Jones was not a fan favorite on draft night but slowly won over the hearts of New Yorkers after an impressive preseason – a combined 29-of-34 for 416 yards and two touchdowns in 4 preseason games. You could only assume Eli’s seat got a little hotter after watching Daniel Jones have a historically good preseason. It turns out that this was exactly the case, as Daniel Jones was named the Week 3 starter early Tuesday morning.
This move clearly was not about Eli’s performance, but rather preparing the future of the franchise. It’s blatantly obvious that the Giants defense stands no chance at giving this team a playoff spot, and the offense seems to disappear after the first drive of every game. Daniel Jones will now have 14 regular-season games to show Giants Nation what he can do before the final judgment is made. Keeping Eli in any longer is counter-productive as this season seems to be a wash, but now Daniel Jones will get meaningful NFL snaps with plenty of season left to work the offense.
Eli Manning seemed much less emotional about the change than two years ago when he lost his starting streak to Geno Smith. In his interview, he noted that he “sort of signed up for this” knowing a young QB was drafted No. 6 overall this year by the team.
Eli added that he will give Daniel his full support, telling interviewers “I knew there was a possibility and I just said I’ll handle it, I’ll support Daniel, I’ll be a good teammate and do what I’m told.“
Daniel Jones, in an eerily-familiar way to Eli Manning at the podium, spoke calmly about his readiness to take on the starting role: “I certainly feel good about how far I have come in my preparation and my progress since I got here in the spring, through camp and through these first couple weeks – I’ll certainly do all I can to be as prepared as possible. Yeah, I feel ready and I’m certainly looking forward to the opportunity.“
Daniel Jones received some extra good news on Thursday night when the Giants announced that Sterling Shepard is out of concussion protocol and available for the rookie’s first NFL start.
Tampa Bay, after a 20-14 victory on TNF against the Panthers, are coming off of an extra 3 days of rest. Daniel Jones hopes to get the stale Giants offense up and down the field after only scoring a combined 31 points in weeks 1 and 2.
After a promising second half for the defense on Sunday against Buffalo, the Giants look to change the tides and bring home their first victory of the 2019 season.
Featured Image: NBC New York
