New York Giants quarterback Daniel Jones, after four seasons of trying to figure out what he is in this league, is standing at the precipice of stardom.
Jones has been given a chance to become one of the NFL’s elite quarterbacks. He is coached by the men who mentored two of the game’s best in Patrick Mahomes (offensive coordinator Mike Kafka) and Josh Allen (head coach Brian Daboll and QB coach Shea Tierney), and has been surrounded with enough weapons this offseason to possibly make that happen.
Buy Giants TicketsGeneral manager Joe Schoen has supplied Jones with a top tight end in Darren Waller and brought back his Pro Bowl running back, Saquon Barkley, in addition to fortifying the wide receivers corps.
The Giants don’t have a legit No. 1 wideout but do have a slew of very capable ‘twos’ and ‘threes.’ They believe that will be plenty.
“I think we have a ton of guys who can make a lot of plays in a lot of different ways,” Jones told reporters on Wednesday.
“As a quarterback, I think that’s an exciting opportunity for you to see all those guys line up and the different ways we can attack a defense and all the different skill sets. They’re all good at a number of things, and really good at a couple of things. It’s emphasizing those, and that’s an exciting position to be in from a quarterback. I think we’ve got a good group.”
He’s right. The Giants have a starting trio of Isaiah Hodgins and Darius Slayton on the wings with Parris Campbell in the slot. Behind those three are Sterling Shepard, Wan’Dale Robinson, and rookie speedster Jalin Hyatt.
The biggest project will be Hyatt, a player who has been spectacular at times but is still very much a rookie. He will locker next to Jones this year in an effort to solidify their bond.
“I think he’s made a ton of progress and worked really hard to do it,” said Jones. “So, a large credit to him and how he’s gone about his work. He’s made a tremendous amount of progress showing up throughout camp making plays. We’ll continue to work towards improving all together. He’s in a good spot.”
But that spot is still a tough one. Jones explained being a rookie wideout is no walk in the park.
“I think for any rookie, it’s just coming in and learning an NFL offense, learning the NFL passing concepts, the routes you’re running. For all rookie receivers, it’s a lot different than what they’re used to. I think that’s the big thing, just learning the concepts, learning the playbook, and then learning the details in the routes and how to work against certain different looks, how to get open, how to feel space and zone and then beat man coverage. He’s done a good job learning all that.”
Hyatt was asked how much growth he’s seen in himself since he arrived at camp a month ago.
“I’ve seen a lot of growth. It starts with the guys you go against in practice every day,” he said. “We have some great competitors here. It starts with your habits; I’ve learned some good habits here, and it starts with being in the film room more with (quarterback Daniel Jones) DJ and just trying to connect with everything and try to get a rhythm for myself and get comfortable just in the playbook and in this offense and do whatever they need me to do. So, a ton of growth since day one.”
