“It’s a good problem to have”: Giants GM reflects on Daniel Jones contract woes
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The New York Giants consider Daniel Jones as the man but they do not have enough confidence that they are willing to exercise his fifth-year option on his rookie deal.
On Wednesday, during a PFTPM conversation with the team’s GM Joe Schoen, the question about not offering Jones $22 million arose as the team claims to be committed to him.
“We’ve described it as betting against Jones”: GM Schoen
The GM has stated, “The $22 million, I mean that’s a large number, but again we’re excited about working with Daniel, We’re happy where he is. This isn’t an indictment on who Daniel is as a person or anything like that.“
The Giants are happy with what Jones has done for the entire organization and even during the offseason program of the team. The GM expressed that the team is “excited” to work with Jones. The team has made the offensive line stronger this offseason. In addition to this, RB Saquon Barkley is once again healthy and is expected to play next season. In light of all these events, the NY Giants feel that this is the best situation for them overall.
The GM described it as “betting against Jones.” The organization is willing to avoid paying him $22 million if it means Jones ends up having a stellar season in the final year of his rookie contract.
“It’s a good problem to have, You’ve also got the franchise tag if you need it a year from now. That’s a gamble I’d say that’s an $8 million gamble, or you’re talking to his representatives and you’re trying to get an extension.“
Schoen is of the opinion that the team has set him up with all the necessary weapons on the offensive end and that he expects Jones to ‘put his best foot forward.’ It is likely that the future of Daniel Jones will be determined post his performance this season.
The QB franchise tag has significantly increased from $29 million in 2022 to somewhere around $34 million in 2023. The Giants are essentially gambling on Daniel Jones.
However, they seem to be okay with the fact that they’d rather regret not having picked up his player option because he played great rather than regretting picking up his option because he did not play great.
When asked if Jones was meant to be motivated by this decision of not picking him up, Schoen added, “I don’t think Daniel needs motivation, I think he’s a naturally motivated kid. He’s a self-starter, he’s in here all the time. I don’t think Daniel needed any incentive to go out and perform at a high level. I think he truly wants to be great. He approaches the game like that. Although it may be an incentive, I don’t think he’s a kid that needs an incentive or a carrot out there to go perform well.“
The other teams such as the Bears and Browns not exercising their fifth-year options did not have any significant impact on the Giants’ decision regarding Jones.
“We looked at what was best for the New York Giants and the situation where again, listen, we’ve known Daniel for three months, looking forward to working with him and we thought this was the best option for us moving forward,” Schoen cleared that what other teams did had no impact on the decisions of the NY Giants.
The Giants will have to reconsider their stance on Daniel Jones in 2023, it could be obvious or not, however, it will all depend on how the QB fares and the team’s overall performance in this season.
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