Daniel Jones left the game hurt on Sunday. After being unable to come back, the NY Giants held on to a massive victory to claim 1st place in the NFC East.
The NY Giants never make it easy for themselves. Winning games in the NFL only get so much harder once your starting quarterback goes down midgame.
Daniel Jones left Sunday’s game early against the Bengals after an apparent hamstring injury while running for a first down. It was a scary sight for everyone at 1925 Giants Drive as Jones exited the game after being unable to use any lower body torque after the injury.
Jones finished the day 16/27 with 213 yards and again no turnovers for the third straight week. It’s no coincidence Big Blue has won all three games without a Jones turnover. Although he didn’t score a touchdown, he led a brilliant opening drive for six courtesy of Wayne “The Train” Gallman.
It wasn’t always pretty or impressive but Jones looked good for most of the day. He picked up several 3rd down conversions and a big 4th down try to get the team’s lone touchdown.
We break down his full performance for the day here.
Daniel Jones’ Best Throw of the Day
Situation: 3rd & 2 from the NY Giants’ 43-yard line, with the game tied 0-0, with 12:19 remaining in the 1st quarter.
The NY Giants came out with a bang on their first drive. They ran the ball well and made the throws necessary to move the chains.
Jones’ best throw of the day came on the game’s first drive. On 3rd & 2 from their own 43, Jones had Evan Engram to his right with three receivers to his left. It was man coverage from the Cincy defense and Jones audibled at the line to the perfect man-beater concept.
Jones took the snap and instantly looked to Engram as his first read. He made the smart decision to try and hit a big play in one on one man coverage and let Engram make a play. Evan burned his man downfield and got a step on him giving Jones a chance to make the deep throw.
Jones took his shot and delivered a perfect pass into the hands of Engram running full stride. From there, Engram took off running about 25 more yards and brought the Big Blue offense to the Bengals’ 4-yard line. From there, it wasn’t easy sledding as it took four run attempts to cash in for six but Gallman’s plow on 4th down got the job done when it was needed.
It was exciting to see Jones make a great first read and connect with his receiver deep downfield. Engram, while still making weekly mistakes like today’s fumble, is still a key weapon for the Giants offense and he seems to have full support and confidence from his quarterback. If #8 and #88 can make a formidable duo, the NY Giants’ offense will have many more opportunities to make plays all over the field.
Daniel Jones’ Worst Moment of the Day
Daniel Jones and the New York offense started to click again as they marched down the field on their first drive of the second half. Jones hooked up with Engram again for a huge play for 44 yards. Gallman was churning yards and cutting through the Bengals’ struggling defense before Jones had a keeper that changed the entire game.
On 1st & 10 from the Cincinnati 27-yard line, Jones kept the ball himself and took off running for 7 yards. After taking an awkward tumble forwards, Jones appeared to injury his hamstring after the tackle. Jones got up and was clearly limping and holding his right upper leg area.
Jones stayed in for two plays, handing the ball off to Gallman for a gain of 2 before throwing it to Wayne for the first on 3rd and 1. On that throw, Jones noticeably threw with zero lower body movement and had no explosion or torque behind his throw.
Jones then went down and took himself out of the game. He was clearly hobbling and was in much pain while making the throw with just enough zip to thread the needle to Gallman.
He sat out the rest of the drive as it stalled once Colt McCoy entered the game. Big Blue’s field goal regained them the lead 13-10.
The next drive, Jones kicked McCoy off the field in a questionable move at best. After one more throw, it was painfully obvious that Daniel’s leg was in too much pain and he would not be able to carry on the rest of the day.
Daniel Jones Final Week 12 Grade: C+
It wasn’t easy to grade Daniel Jones’ performance today. While he didn’t finish the game, he showed enough to not receive an incomplete grade. Although it wasn’t all great, Jones seemingly did enough to get the win today.
He led one touchdown drive highlighted by his 53-yard hookup with Engram and two field goals drive. One of those drives was where Jones got hurt while the offense was driving and moving the ball well. It would have been nice to see Jones get another touchdown for himself or lead another drive, but the NY Giants must be seemingly lucky that Jones’ injury doesn’t seem too serious pending further tests and an MRI.
In his absence, Colt McCoy wasn’t spectacular but guided the Giants offense to narrowly avoid an embarrassing upset. McCoy was 6/10 for 31 yards headlined by a massive 3rd down conversion off a ridiculous concentration catch from Sterling Shepard. He should’ve had the game-ending 3rd down pickup on an excellent play design for a play-action rollout with a dump off to Gallman to end the game. The play was called back due to a penalty and nearly cost the NY Giants a much-needed victory. All in all, it was a solid performance from McCoy, an 11-year veteran. We’ll also give McCoy a C+ for his performance.
The NY Giants won in ugly fashion but has finally won three in a row for the first time since 2016.
Daniel Jones and his injury will be worth monitoring all week but Head Coach Joe Judge already said he expects to see Jones play next Sunday in Seattle. Big Blue is in first place for the first time under Joe Judge and will look to keep ht momentum rolling next week.