NY Giants: Evaluating the Impact of the 2019 Draft Class.

The NY Giants 2019 Draft Class underwhelmed in Year 2. The team will need more from this group next year in 2021.

The NY Giants drafted 10 players in 2019. Of those 10 players, only five remain on the upcoming 2021 roster.

Losing half of your draft class through two years is an unacceptable number.

Although only five players remain, those five had an immense impact on the Giants’ 2020 season. There were some good things seen, some disappointment, and everything else in between.

The team is going to need more from these guys in a critical year three. Starting from the top and working down the rounds, the five players remaining must remain integral parts of the roster for the next season, and hopefully more to come after that.

Here, we evaluate and grade the 2020 NY Giants rookies and what to expect for next season.

Round 1, #6 Overall: QB Daniel Jones, Duke

Daniel Jones‘ quest to becoming a franchise quarterback took some bumps in his sophomore season.

The No. 6 overall pick in 2019, Jones was seen as a reach by most analysts and league executives alike. However, Giants general manager Dave Gettleman was not going to risk or mess around taking Jones at 17 while another team could have nabbed him.

Jones entered his rookie year with low expectations and an unexpected time of arrival due to the starting presence of Eli Manning. The Manning experiment ended quickly in 2019 after only two games and the keys to the kingdom were handed to Jones.

Jones responded with four touchdowns in an 18-point second-half comeback in Tampa Bay in his first start. Many called it the dream debut for any NFL quarterback. From there, Jones went on to have an impressive rookie season with some turnover concerns as well.

In year one, Jones threw for 3,027 yards, 24 touchdowns, and 12 interceptions with a 61.9 completion percentage and an 87.7 QB rating in 12 games. In 2020, all these numbers regressed to 2,943 yards, 11 touchdowns, and 10 interceptions, with a 62.5% completion percentage and an 80.4 QB rating also in 12 games.

Jones’ statistical regression this year was very noticeable. He had five 300-yard games and four games with four or more touchdowns in one game.

In 2020, he had zero games with either 300 yards or 4+ touchdowns.

There are many reasons why his numbers fell significantly. Jones’ lost his most talented weapon in Saquon Barkley, Evan Engram had the worst season of his career, his receivers struggled to create any separation or make contested catches, Jason Garrett didn’t do nearly enough as Offensive Coordinator, and the offensive line still hasn’t been fully fixed. This recipe of five things going wrong is a primary reason why Jones’ numbers were so poor this year.

Jones is a talented player but he still struggles with his decision-making, analyzing the field and pass rush, and he is still turning the ball over too much. 18 fumbles in year one was cut down to 11 but his interception numbers only dropped from 12 to 10.

If Jones wants to be the long-term franchise quarterback in New York, he needs to improve his ball-handling, make quicker decisions, he needs to stay healthy (he’s missed four games in each season), and needs to start being a quarterback on the attack instead of acting as a game-manager.

The jury is still out on Jones but the team seems very committed to him. John Mara, Joe Judge, and Dave Gettleman all remain high on the #6 pick from 2019 but year three is really the final straw to figure out what you have in your first-round quarterback.

It’s now or never for Daniel Jones. He must keep progressing next season and show he can be a reliable, stable figure in the Giants’ offense who can win them games on his arm talent instead of helping them not lose games.

Year 2 Grade: C-

2021 Role and Beyond:

Jones will be under center again in 2021 barring an unexpected major development.

The Giants have the #11 pick in the draft and will likely miss out on at least the top two quarterbacks in this draft. Don’t be surprised when that number is actually three or four QBs in the top 10 with an exciting and promising QB class.

With that being said, the Giants offense will probably look much different again next year. Barkley should be back, the receivers need to be upgraded, and hopefully, the team keeps building the foundation of their offensive line.

Jones will need to live up to his potential and play the part of a trustworthy quarterback that the team can feel good about week in and week out.