G-Men won’t be competitive until Jones fixes his turnover problems
EAST RUTHERFORD >> In the battle of first-round quarterbacks last Sunday at MetLife Stadium, Kyler Murray distinguished himself from Daniel Jones in a critical way.
No, Murray didn’t light up the scoreboard. He had a season-low 104 passing yards, but that was mostly because Arizona needed him to be conservative on an afternoon with torrential downpours in the second half.
To that end the No. 1 overall pick out of Oklahoma delivered — he didn’t have a single turnover as the Cardinals held on for a 27-21 victory.
Jones, on the other hand, had 223 passing yards but threw an interception on the Giants’ first possession and then fumbled twice in the second half. On all three turnovers, the Cardinals ended up scoring points.
Jones now has 11 turnovers (seven interceptions, four fumbles) in five starts since replacing Eli Manning. Until he gets that fixed, New York’s three-game losing streak will likely persist in what’s shaping up to be another sub-.500 season.
“It’s a huge focus of mine,” Jones said this week ahead of Sunday’s game in Detroit. “I think it’s tough to win when you’re turning the ball over that much. I’ve got to do a better job with that. Decision making, securing the ball in the pocket, and securing the ball when I’m out of the pocket — all of that stuff is really important.”
Jones’ ball security issues account largely for the Giants’ dubious distinction of ranking 31st in the NFL in turnover margin (-10).
But let’s not get carried away. Some of the problems are understandable given that he’s only a rookie. Jones isn’t the first quarterback to come into the league with butter fingers. Peyton Manning had 28 interceptions in his first rodeo with the Colts in 1998.
Jones needs to persevere through his struggles and continue studying his mistakes on film. And he will. Head coach Pat Shurmur closed the door on the Giants potentially going back to Manning at some point when asked about a quarterback controversy.
“I think Daniel is going to learn from everything that’s going on,” Shurmur said. “Just like all the other rookies and their playing, they’re going to learn from the things that happen. But you have to learn and you have to win games, and I’m well aware of that. I’m totally well aware of that.”
Make no mistake, Jones continues to flash immense upside and has opened up the Giants’ offense with his ability to scramble and willingness to keep his eyes downfield and create big plays.
The key is finding a balance between being aggressive and being reckless. According to Next Gen Stats, Jones has the highest ‘aggressiveness’ in the league, which refers to the rate of pass attempts into tight coverage. More than a quarter (27.4 percent) of his passes have landed where there is a defender within 1 yard of the receiver.
Jones was overly aggressive on his interception last week, when he threw to the firstdown marker on third-and-13 but into double-coverage on Golden Tate. The 22-year-old admitted afterward it was a “force” that he should not have thrown.
“I have to do a better job at that stuff and I’m confident that I will,” Jones said. “I think that’ll help everyone … stay in a rhythm and consistently execute. I think as an offense, we felt like we’ve been able to execute, we’ve been able to move the ball when we played. It’s just things like that that are stopping us or preventing us from being as productive as we can.”
He reminded Giants fans of that two drives later with a perfectly timed over-theshoulder pass to tight end Rhett Ellison, in between two defenders, for a 28-yard touchdown.
“I think he’s doing a better job at reading defenses,” Tate said. “It’s probably hard to see those because we came off such a tough loss, but just looking at film, you see some growth. You see him doing a lot of good things, making a lot of good plays. There are just a few that we all have to clean up.”
Beyond reading coverages, Jones’ timing and awareness in the pocket also need to improve. He was simply careless with the ball as he was stripsacked from his right side by Arizona’s Chandler Jones during the third quarter.
Overall, it was a disappointing performance given all the harsh learning Jones experienced against Minnesota’s and New England’s top-flight defenses in the two weeks prior. Arizona’s unit was not nearly as formidable.
The Lions’ 30th-ranked pass defense presents another opportunity to respond. Jones then has half a season left to inspire confidence in his ability to lead the franchise for years to come.
“He’s tough, he’s resilient and I think he has a bright future,” Shurmur said. “That’s what I like about him.”
Contact Greg Johnson at gjohnson@21stcenturymedia.com an follow him on Twitter @gregp_j for Giants coverage