The euphoria of this latest Giants win is exhilarating. The Giants successfully avenged their heartbreaking loss against the Vikings and didn’t need a lucky 60-yard FG to do it like they did!
While almost every facet of the team played a part, none was bigger than Daniel Jones. Anyone trying to find an excuse to say he was carried will have a hard time finding it when Saquon Barkley only had 9 totes and the defense didn’t produce any sacks or takeaways.
Jones was able to compile over 300 yards passing, 78 rushing yards, and 2 TDs. Some will go out of their way to point out Minnesota’s weak defense. That doesn’t take away the fact that Jones went into hostile playoff territory on the road against an elite offense and beat them with lesser offensive talent.
Not A Franchise Talent? Not So Fast
The debate rages on regarding Jones’ status as a “Franchise QB”, but should it? There are many higher regarded and/or high paid Quarterbacks with inferior playoff records and didn’t even win their 1st playoff game like Jones did. Some names include Dak Prescott, Kyler Murray, Justin Herbert, Josh Allen, Lamar Jackson, Jalen Hurts, Matt Ryan, Deshaun Watson, Derek Carr, Kirk Cousins, and Andy Dalton.
Being a “Franchise QB” doesn’t always mean putting up gaudy stats, but more so to elevate their play and their team to win when it matters most. Jones may never be on the prolific passer like Patrick Mahomes, but if he can propel his team to the playoffs each year and not go “1 and done” each year like certain overpaid QBs do, then that’s all that matters.
Pay Him Now Before It Gets Harder To
Whether people want to admit it or not, this is not an overall good era for QBs. There are only 3-5 true elite QBs in the game right now (not counting Brady or Rodgers given this isn’t technically their era). That level of play is VERY hard to find and finding good/solid QB play is almost as difficult.
“Solid” QB’s get paid in the 30-35 million range and can even eclipse 40 with the higher end stat compiler types (see Dak Prescott). With Jones’ latest win, he has already begun to gather leverage come negotiation time and those contract demands can go up further if he continues to win games.
A win against the Eagles on Saturday could put Jones in the drivers-seat to command 40 million a year on a short-term deal. An improbable run to the Super Bowl could seal the Giants’ fate into a long, expensive deal for his services. Winning the Super Bowl? Forget about it, just hand him a blank check.
Best Case And Worse Case Scenario For NYG
While I imagine the Giants’ front office doesn’t want to get too ahead of themselves, getting in front of an ascending talent should still be worth monitoring. Signing Danny Dimes to a modest contract with some stability to reward him should be a priority.
If Jones were to be signed to a midrange 3-year deal with an “out” after year 2 (in case his growth stalls), that would put the Giants in a win-win situation. It would reward their QB and give them a potential value signing if Jones continues to excel. Should he become that top 10 guy or better, you get 2 years at a discount.
Worst case scenario he remains stuck in that mid-tier range and his deal goes on to be merely a market value deal. The “out” after year 2 gives the front office a chance to draft his successor in the deep 2024 QB draft class and Jones becomes a 1-year bridge to a new QB with them moving on from him in 2025.
In The End, Lets Just Enjoy The Show
At the end of the day, our favorite team has punched above their weight class all season and continue to do so in the brightest of lights. Any wins beyond this point are a pure bonus for all, but of course we wont sneeze at the possibility. The road continues on to Philadelphia and hopefully beyond. GO BIG BLUE!