The New York Giants’ 2024 season has been a masterclass in dysfunction. At 2-12, the team has cycled through quarterbacks, watched its defense crumble, and seen the offense sputter despite a promising rookie receiver in Malik Nabers. Fans have flown banners over MetLife Stadium demanding accountability, and the organization has become the laughingstock of the league.
Enter Kristopher Knox from Bleacher Report, who hilariously assigned blame to every team eliminated from playoff contention. When it came to the Giants, they took the low-hanging fruit:
“The Giants never had a shot to compete this season because of poor quarterback play. In retrospect, extending Jones was a massive mistake. He was a major liability this season, throwing for just eight touchdowns with seven interceptions and a lowly 79.4 QB rating.”
Jones’ numbers are ugly. Nobody’s denying that. But Knox's analysis completely ignores the fact that Jones wasn’t the one who signed himself to a $160 million extension or surrounded himself with a broken roster. He also wasn't the one who made a mockery of his departure for the world to see.
The real culprits are sitting in the front office and wearing headsets on Sundays.
Joe Schoen and Brian Daboll are to blame for historically awful 2024 season
Let’s break this down. Knox claims the Giants “never had a shot” because of Jones’ poor play. Fair enough, Jones struggled for sure, but acting like he was the sole reason the Giants' collapse is absurd.
First, let’s talk about that so-called “new and improved offensive supporting cast.” Malik Nabers has been fantastic, but the help around him is almost non-existent. The receiving corps includes solid but uninspiring Darius Slayton and second-year draft disappointment Jalin Hyatt. The offensive line completely fell apart after Andrew Thomas got hurt, and reclamation project Evan Neal didn't start the first nine games.
Then there’s the running game—or lack thereof. Saquon Barkley wasn’t brought back in free agency. Instead, the Giants handed the keys to rookie Tyrone Tracy Jr., who, while promising, isn’t exactly the NFL's lead rusher Barkley is. Barkley would not be having the same success he has had in Philly, but is that Jones' fault, too? Or is that more so on roster construction and playcalling?
And what about the defense? The decision to hire Shane Bowen as defensive coordinator has been a total flop. The Giants can’t stop anyone, and their secondary can't force a turnover if it tried ever since Xavier McKinney was let go in free agency. But somehow, this is all on Jones?
As bad as 2024 has been, NFL analyst Maurice Jones-Drew thinks the Giants’ problems are just beginning. Appearing on The Dan Patrick Show, Jones-Drew didn’t mince words when naming the Giants as the team in the worst shape moving forward:
“To me, it has to be the Giants, and the reason being is you let go of two or three players in free agency that are playing well… McKinney and Green Bay… Obviously Saquon and Philly… You just can’t let talent hit free agency and not bring ‘em back. You just can’t do that, and a lot of that was because they paid Daniel Jones a ton of money.”
Jones-Drew’s point hits hard. The Giants didn’t just overpay for Jones—they sabotaged the roster in the process. Letting stars like McKinney and Barkley walk to rivals in Green Bay and Philadelphia, respectively, has gutted the team of talent. While the front office scrambles to clean up the mess, it’s clear the ripple effects of those decisions will be felt long after Jones’ departure. That's on management.
What’s confusing is how Knox absolves Joe Schoen of blame while casually acknowledging that extending Jones was a mistake. They wrote:
“Aside from his decision to extend Daniel Jones after , the GM has done a respectable job of building the roster.”
Really? Schoen passing on addressing the most important position in all of sports is respectable?
He passed on drafting a quarterback at No. 6, despite options like Michael Penix Jr., Bo Nix, and J.J. McCarthy being available. He failed to bring in legitimate competition for Jones—signing Drew Lock instead of better available free-agent QBs like Jameis Winston and sticking with undrafted second-year QB Tommy DeVito as the third-stringer.
As for Brian Daboll, the coach who won Coach of the Year in 2022 seems to have completely lost his touch. The playcalling has been uninspired, the adjustments nonexistent, and the team’s effort on Sundays is questionable at best. Multiple players have quit on this team while playing.
Knox's take that “poor quarterback play” is to blame for the Giants’ 2024 collapse is pretty reductive. While they bring up very valid points about quarterback play, the broader systemic issues in New York deserve more attention. Was Jones bad? Sure. But the problems in New York run far deeper. Look at the product on the field since his benching. This team is awful, the GM makes head-scratching decisions, and the head coach couldn't motivate me to make a sandwich.
Look no further than the Minnesota Vikings immediately picking up Jones after his release, then the subsequent potential free agency interest he's garnering for 2025. If he were a franchise destroyer, he wouldn't get another shot.
The truth is, this season’s failures are the result of systemic issues at every level of the organization. Joe Schoen, Brian Daboll, and even ownership all played a role in creating this disaster. Until there’s accountability across the board, no quarterback—rookie or veteran—is going to save this team.
The Giants’ problems run so much deeper than Daniel Jones.