Big Blue hopes ‘Danny Dimes’ has a ring to it
The New York Yankees are getting ready for the playoffs. The Mets are trying to squeeze into a wild-card spot. The Rangers and Devils are building toward starting a new season.
The injury-ravaged Jets were disappointing in a loss to the Super Bowl champion Patriots. And there was, of course, the ankle injury to 2018 NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year Saquon Barkley.
It was a great lineup of sports stories for the Big Apple.
Yet, there was only one story in the metropolitan area Monday. It was rookie quarterback Daniel Jones of the New York Giants, Barkley’s teammate.
The mild-mannered kid from Duke stole the headlines after replacing Eli Manning as the starting quarterback and rallying the Giants from an 18-point deficit to a 32-31 win over the Tampa Bay Bucs on Sunday.
It was the much-needed CPR on a season that was quickly expiring after bad losses to Dallas and Buffalo in the first two games.
The sixth pick overall in the NFL draft, Jones revived the season by hitting 23 of 36 passes for 336 yards and two touchdowns and a 2-point conversion pass. He also ran for two TDs, including the winner from 7 yards on a fourth-down scramble with 1:16 to play.
Jones did everything. He hit deep passes. He hit short passes. He used his legs. He used his smarts.
Like his nickname “Danny Dimes,” the passes were right on the money, especially his 7-yard scoring strike to Sterling Shepard in the corner of the end zone in the third quarter.
He was fearless, standing in the pocket and taking hits. He was sacked five times and lost two fumbles. But he also used his mobility to extend plays, something Manning was unable to do at 38 years of age
“I thought we showed a lot of fight and we battled back after kind of creating a hole for ourselves there in the first half,” Jones said after the game. “Exciting win and I look forward to building off of it.”
It was everything Manning would have said. The difference is Jones has wheels and can run an offense with a run-pass option, the norm for the NFL these days.
While Manning didn’t play, he was on the sideline to help Jones.
“He was very involved, the way I would expect any backup to be,” Shurmur said Monday of Manning. “He was there and we all were there in support of Daniel, trying to give him the right plays and right advice. It was a good situation for Daniel. Imagine being in your first start and sitting next to a guy that has done it for 15 years and at a very high level. It has to be very reassuring for Dan.”
When the game was over, you could see Manning mouth the words “good job” into the rookie’s ear on the field.
The win was manna for the Giants, a team that has lost its way since winning Super Bowls after the 2007 and ’11 seasons behind Easy Eli. They have made the playoffs once since 2011 and won eight games combined in the last two seasons.
This win snapped a five-game losing streak dating to last season and renewed hope the team was back on track.
Roethlisberger gets surgery, plans 2020 return: Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger had surgery to repair his right elbow on Monday.
Team spokesman Burt Lauten said Roethlisberger underwent the procedure at Cedars-Sinai Kerlan Jobe Orthopedic Clinic in Los Angeles.
Roethlisberger will begin rehabilitation when he returns to Pittsburgh and plans to return to the field in 2020. The two-time Super Bowl winner signed a contract extension in the spring that runs through the 2021 season.
Newton still out: Kyle Allen will make his second straight start Sunday when the Panthers visit the Texans.
Panthers coach Ron Rivera wasted no time ruling out quarterback Cam Newton for a second straight game due to a lingering mid-foot sprain. Rivera said there is “no timetable” for Newton’s return and that the 2015 league MVP will continue to receive treatment.
Newton originally hurt his foot in the Panthers’ third preseason game and then aggravated the injury in a Week 2 loss to the Buccaneers. He hasn’t practiced since.
Allen threw four touchdown passes in the Panthers’ 38-20 win over the Cardinals on Sunday, improving to 2-0 as an NFL starter.
Extra points: The Patriots placed former Pro Bowl FB James Develin was placed on IR with a neck injury. … The Cardinals released veteran WR Michael Crabtree. The 32-year-old was inactive in Week 1 and has just four catches for 22 yards. … Bills DT Harrison Phillips will miss the rest of the season with a torn ACL. (News services)