The Giants are going into the 2024 season with the hope that their offense can be a lot more productive than the one Daniel Jones quarterbacked before his torn ACL last season, but Jones’s return to game action didn’t offer much immediate reason for happiness.
Jones threw two interceptions and nearly had his first pass on Saturday afternoon picked off by Texans cornerback Derek Stingley. Stingley later got the second interception and Texans safety Jalen Pitre returned the first five yards for a touchdown.
Pitre’s pick came as Jones tried to evade defensive end Derek Barnett in his own end zone and he made an ill-advised attempt to get the ball to tight end Theo Johnson. Jones referenced that choice in his postgame comments along with his more positive review of a second quarter that saw the Giants score 10 points.
“Obviously, the first quarter didn’t go how we wanted it,” Jones said, via Pat Leonard of the New York Daily News. “A bad decision and a bad throw, I’d like to have that back. We got some things going in the second quarter. Executed, moved the ball. You want to finish with touchdowns, but I was happy with how we responded.”
Jones said he and his knee came out of the game feeling well, which is another positive on a day that started out in exact opposition to how the Giants would have drawn it up. Thankfully for them and Jones, it’s the preseason and there’s time to iron out the kinks before anything lands on the permanent record.