After ten weeks of uninspired and losing football, the New York Giants finally benched Daniel Jones, demoting him to the third-string and then fourth-string. Ultimately, Jones asked the Giants to release him, and as a free agent, he has attracted plenty of suitors on the market. On the other hand, this situation has ignited calls to fire coach Brian Daboll and GM Joe Schoen for gross mismanagement. Anyway, among the teams interested in Daniel Jones are the Las Vegas Raiders, particularly after the season-ending injury to Gardner Minshew.
“I’ve heard that the Raiders also are interested following the injury to Gardner Minshew,” NFL insider Josina Anderson said on X, formerly Twitter.
The ex-Giants QB moves on
While the Raiders reportedly want to sign Daniel Jones, out for the season with a broken collarbone, Jones prefers to join a playoff team, per reports.
However, with a 2-9 record, the Raiders will not see the playoffs this year, leaving him the option to sign with either the Baltimore Ravens or the Minnesota Vikings.
Yet, if Daniel Jones does sign with the Raiders, he might automatically take Gardner Minshew’s spot as the starter.
Per reports, these teams have ended up becoming the likeliest landing spots for Jones, and both teams have credible playoff aspirations. The Ravens are 8-4 while the Vikings are 9-2.
Moreover, he would end up playing behind either Lamar Jackson or Sam Darnold, and this experience could help him bounce back from his losing tenure with the Giants.
Still, Vikings coach Kevin O’Connell hasn’t committed to answering the question of signing Jones.
“I really can’t get into too much about any short-term or long-term,” he said, via ESPN. “I can just say that I’ve been a big fan of Daniel’s for a long time and I hope wherever his next step takes him, it’s a good opportunity for him.”
Choices
Choosing between the Raiders, the Vikings, or the Ravens should depend on what Jones wants to do at this point of his career.
A former top-ten pick falling to fourth-string quarterback does not make for a stellar career, and Jones might want to recuperate his value around the league by stringing some wins together as the starting quarterback for another bad team.
However, Jones has also only had a single playoff win in two appearances.
He could choose to sacrifice a starting position for a bad team by becoming a backup to solid QBs–including two-time MVP Lamar Jackson–and seeing playoff success, even the Super Bowl, potentially.
Wherever he lands, Jones should make the most of his free agency and prove that he belongs in the league despite an abundance of evidence to the contrary.
