NFL analyst defends Giants' Daniel Jones, says QB was 'made for New York'

ESPN NFL Draft guru Mel Kiper Jr. isn't the only knowledgeable member of the football community who believes New York Giants quarterback Daniel Jones could return to the form that helped him win a road playoff start in January 2023 if New York general manager Joe Schoen properly builds around Jones this offseason. 

"Daniel Jones...I know last year wasn’t great, I get that, but the whole offense wasn’t great," analyst Chris Simms of NBC Sports and Pro Football Talk told Ed Valentine of Big Blue View at the NFL scouting combine on Thursday. "I also know that Joe Schoen and some people said to us here on ("PFT Live") this week, well he’s been hurt two out of the last three years, so we gotta look for something. My response to that would be, 'Everybody’s going to get hurt playing in that offense with the way you guys block.'"

Specifically, Jones missed a total of nine games from the start of the 2021 season up until he suffered a torn ACL on Nov. 5. Despite those setbacks, Simms referred to Jones as "problem 74 on the Giants" heading into the start of the new league year on March 13. 

The Giants reportedly don't love the thought of sacrificing assets to move up from the sixth overall pick in the 2024 draft order for a quarterback who eventually would replace Jones. Schoen could "reach" for a signal-caller at selection No. 6, but Simms indicated Jones could follow in the footsteps of Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Baker Mayfield and Jared Goff of the Detroit Lions. Mayfield and Goff both resurrected their careers because those teams did well to surround their QB1s with talent. 

"...I think he’s made for New York because I don’t think he really gives a damn or listens to any of that," Simms added about Jones' mindset. "In fact, I know he doesn’t. Sometimes I see him and he asks me about football and he’s like, 'What’s going on in the league here?' and I can tell he’s blocking the noise out. So, he’s curious to ask me because he doesn’t want to get too in the weeds to know some of the negative bull cr-p that’s out there and I respect him for that."

The fact that Schoen can escape Jones' contract next offseason allows the executive to either spend a high draft pick on a quarterback this spring or save such a decision for 2025. Regardless of what Schoen does during the draft, Jones must concentrate on being fully healthy for training-camp sessions in case he's asked to compete for his job this summer.