The Giants benched quarterback Daniel Jones for business reasons, not for football reasons. And the Giants allowed personal feelings to interfere with what would have been the best business decision — prevent him from going elsewhere and proving the Giants wrong, Saquon-style.
But they’re going to waive him. Even though they haven’t done it, the owner has said it’s going to happen. (The reason for the delay isn’t clear, but it’s clearly coming.)
While many have adopted the narrative that Jones stinks, he doesn’t. He hasn’t. He helped lead the Giants to the playoffs in 2022. With Jones at the helm, the Giants beat the Vikings in Minnesota in the wild-card round. His struggles have typically traced to subpar offensive line play.
Once he’s released and clears waivers (he absolutely will), Jones will be free to sign with any team at any time. He’ll first need to ask whether to join a team now or wait.
Waiting would allow Jones to get a better feel for who the real contenders will be — and it might give him a chance to play sooner than later, if a starter gets injured elsewhere.
Regardless, consider the backup situations for the various contenders and ask whether a guy who earned a contract that paid $40 million per year and won a playoff game would be better than the current No. 2.
Buffalo: Mitch Trubisky. (Probably.)
Miami: Skylar Thompson/Tyler Huntley. (Yes.)
Baltimore: Josh Johnson. (Yes.)
Pittsburgh: Justin Fields. (Yes, but they seem to be committed to Fields as current backup and potential future starter.)
Houston: Davis Mills. (Yes.)
Kansas City: Carson Wentz. (Probably.)
L.A. Chargers: Easton Stick. (Yes.)
Denver: Jarrett Stidham. (Yes.)
Philadelphia: Kenny Pickett. (Yes.)
Washington: Marcus Mariota. (Probably.)
Detroit: Hendon Hooker. (Yes.)
Minnesota: Nick Mullens. (Yes.)
Green Bay: Malik Willis. (Yes, although Willis has played well this year.)
Atlanta: Michael Penix Jr. (Yes, but they likely wouldn’t do it.)
Tampa Bay: Kyle Trask. (Yes.)
Arizona: Clayton Tune. (Yes.)
Seattle: Sam Howell. (Yes.)
San Francisco: Brandon Allen. (Yes.)
L.A. Rams: Jimmy Garoppolo. (Probably.)
So, yes, someone who is currently contending should want Jones. Jones can afford to take his time. To wait for a clear shot to potentially contribute on a team that has the ability to go deep into the playoffs.
And maybe to wait to see if/when a starter gets injured and an immediate need arises for Jones to play, sooner than later.
