BIG BLUE SIMPLY OFFENSIVE

EW ENGLAND GIVES JONES & CO. FITS AS HAPLESS ‘O’ EXPOSED IN PRESEASON FINALE

The Giants on offense look ready for the 2021 season — if their goal is to resemble the 2020 version they put on the field.

That version, if you recall, was pretty bad.

This was the one and only preseason game for Daniel Jones and the 24-year-old quarterback Sunday night hoped to create some good vibes before the summer fades away and the real thing begins. Other than one horrid decision and throw, Jones was just fine, but the protection in front of him too often was shabby — where have we heard this before? — and concerns have to linger as far as what product the Giants will put out there.

“I think we played all right,’’ Jones said. “Thought we did a good job moving the ball and making some plays. Obviously got to finish drives and finish with touchdowns.’’

Jones and the starters played one half, leaving the field leading 7-6 in an eventual 22-20 loss to the Patriots at MetLife Stadium. In two weeks, the Broncos come to town for the start of the regular season and, at this moment, there is no reason to believe the Giants’ offense is ready for big things.

Simply put, If Andrew Thomas is going to play like this, the Giants are in big, big trouble. The secondyear left tackle allowed two sacks and one quarterback hit on the first two series, caving in and putting Jones in harm’s way. This is unacceptable, as the Giants have too much invested in the 22year-old Thomas.

Thomas admitted he “started off a little slow’’ and said he needs to evaluate his hand placement and pass sets to see where he needs the most work.

“I think I’ve made improvements but there’s still a lot of things to improve on,’’ Thomas said.

In five offensive series, Jones and a starting unit minus most of the marquee playmakers managed only

one touchdown, a 23-yard dart from Jones to tight end Kaden Smith late in the second quarter, completing a strong two-minute drive. Jones was mostly on target, finishing 17 of 22 for 135 yards.

Jones committed one quarterback sin, when on third-and-goal from the Patriots’ 1-yard line he rolled to his right and looked for tight end Evan Engram in the end zone. The pass was far behind Engram and cornerback D’Angelo Ross was able to come away with a diving interception. It was the sort of unnecessary turnover Jones must purge from his game, as it cost the Giants points.

“Obviously a bad decision there,’’ Jones said. “Got to be smarter and throw the ball away in that situation.’’

The Giants did not get out of the game unscathed, as Engram left in the second quarter with a calf injury and wide receiver Darius Slayton also was forced out in the second quarter, with injuries to his ankle and foot.

Jones took the field without the new toys the front office got for him, as receivers Kenny Golladay, Kadarius Toney and John Ross are all coming back from physical issues. Saquon Barkley is not yet ready for a game and did not play. The same with tight end Kyle Rudolph. So, Jones had Sterling Shepard and Slayton as his starting receivers.

The start was ugly. The first rushing attempt for Devontae Booker went for a 1-yard loss. The first third down of the game for the Giants resulted in a 6-yard sack of Jones, with linebacker Josh Uche beating Thomas.

As the No. 4 pick in the 2020 NFL Draft — and the first offensive linemen taken — Thomas struggled for much of his rookie year, dealing with an ankle issue, but he rebounded and was much better down the stretch. He was not better in this tuneup. On the second offensive series, Thomas was beaten by Ja’Whaun Bentley for a sack.

“There’s definitely pressure,’’ Thomas said. “I put pressure on myself. I have to step up and do what I have to do.’’

Changes on the offensive line created an interesting scenario. Matt Peart lined up at right tackle with the starting unit all summer but did not in the preseason finale. He was replaced by veteran Nate Solder, who has 127 starts in the NFL, almost all at left tackle.

“We wanted to make sure we gave Nate an opportunity to get out there, he’s been practicing very well for us,’’ coach Joe Judge said. “I wouldn’t read too much into that.’’

Judge, as is his way, expressed no concern about the state of the offensive line.

“Nothing’s perfect at this point,’’ Judge said. “We’re far from a finished product.’’

There are two weeks to get things closer to a finished product.