The New York Giants played the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday, September 8, and New York lost in a big way: 28-6. Now, NFL analysts and experts are commenting on the game, and one analyst is calling for the Giants to bench franchise quarterback Daniel Jones.
‘This Game Should Not Have Been a Blowout’
In a September 8 feature following the New York Giants’ loss to the Vikings, Sports Illustrated NFL analyst and expert Conor Orr called for the team to bench Jones. Jones was 22-of-42 for 186 yards and two interceptions, and he also had one pick-six.
Orr divides the blame for the big loss, though, noting “the New York Giants’ offensive line is still a mess.”
However, he stated, “Daniel Jones needs to be benched. Or, at the very least, notified that first-team reps in practice will be doled out on merit from this point forward. With two other quarterbacks on the roster—Drew Lock and Tommy DeVito—whom we know are just as capable of winning games at this point, the time for action is now, before Jones-related excuse making morphs into locker room-wide indifference and cynicism.”
Elsewhere, Orr asserted that “Jones does not have the kind of Justin Fields–like athleticism nor the Josh Allen–like steamroller power to frighten a defense. Most of the designed runs for Jones, a trend that Daboll slipped heavily into with the game still in contention Sunday, were stopped in the backfield. Jones struggled reading what was in front of him, he missed throws and he appeared skittish at times, which is understandable given how tenuous he probably understands his situation to be.”
He added, “Yes there were drops. Yes, DC Brian Flores called a great game for the Vikings. No, this game should not have been a blowout.”
Orr isn’t alone. Paul Schwartz of the New York Post also laid into the Giants and Jones in a September 8 feature, writing, “Judging from the jeers and boos and the general state of disgust and sense of bleak inevitability circulating within the confines of MetLife Stadium on Sunday, this felt like game No. 18 of the sorry 2023 season for the Giants and not the ushering in of anything fresh or improved in any way, shape or form. It actually looked and felt worse, especially for Daniel Jones and a supposedly more explosive offense that was a dud from start to finish.”
However, in the postgame press conference, Giants head coach Brian Daboll was asked about making a quarterback change.
“We’re going to evaluate everything. That’s not in my mind,” Daboll said.
Daniel Jones Had a Crazy Pick-Six
Oh man…
Daniel Jones tried the quick pass and it is picked off by Andrew Van Ginkel for a pick-6!
📺: FOX
Jones’ pick-six came in the third quarter, when the Giants were behind 21-6. New York was first-and-10 at their own 17-yard line. Jones tried a quick screen to Wan’Dale Robinson, but Vikings linebacker Andrew Van Ginkel intercepted the pass and ran into the end zone.
“Daniel Jones is back as the New York Giants’ starting quarterback and he’s already doing Daniel Jones things,” Sports Illustrated writer Ryan Phillips said in a September 8 piece. “On Sunday during the Giants’ Week 1 matchup against the Minnesota Vikings, Jones threw his first pick-six of the 2024 campaign and he did so in an incredibly funny way.”
