He might be in a new city wearing a different shade of blue, but anyone who has watched the Giants over the last five years knows exactly how the Daniel Jones experiment ends. And somehow, he's on the verge of getting another chance to start in the NFL, which is nothing short of mind-boggling.
The No. 6 in the 2019 NFL Draft signed a one-year deal with the Colts back in March in order to push incumbent starter Anthony Richardson for the starting gig. The crazy part is that Richardson has a career 50.6% completion percentage and has thrown 13 interceptions in just 15 NFL starts — so the 28-year-old has a legitimate shot to win the job, especially given
Related: It took one preseason game for Colts to immediately regret signing Daniel Jones
It’s a full-fledged quarterback battle that has taken shape in training camp and will continue to unfold in the preseason. And CBS Sports’ Cody Benjamin even flagged this competition as one of his top storylines to watch as preseason football returns.
Colts’ QB competition opens the door for Giants fans to enjoy the post Jones-era
But for Giants fans, they’re watching this play out with painful familiarity, while thanking their lucky stars their own quarterback competition is in better hands. Russell Wilson is getting older, but his worst is still a significant improvement over the former Duke product’s best.
Big Blue gave him every opportunity to be their signal-caller of the future, including paying him a massive four-year $160 million contract extension in 2023. That deal blew up in their faces, as he battled injuries and never built upon his career year in 2022, in which he led the Giants to the NFC Divisional Round.
After recording 97 turnovers in 69 starts in New York and leading the league in fumbles since being drafted, he’s now someone else’s problem. And Jones has been abysmal in Colts camp.
Even amid his constant struggle in New York, the signing of Jones makes sense for the Colts, who boast a core of weapons that includes Jonathan Taylor, Michael Pittman Jr, Adonai Mitchell, Josh Downs, Alec Pierce, and Tyler Warren.
And Shane Steichen is banking on the fact that a better situation in a less harsh media climate can revive his career, even if his career numbers are more indicative of a career backup. But Richardson, the No. 4 pick in the 2023 Draft out of Florida, has a far higher ceiling if he can put it all together. Yet that remains a massive if.
He possesses all of the tools to be an elite NFL quarterback, and has even shown flashes, but his good comes with even more bad. His pure arm talent and athleticism are freakish, but his accuracy and processing ability are borderline dreadful.
Richardson is still a raw prospect who could benefit from competing with someone like Jones in order to remind him that nothing is earned in this league. And this preseason? That could mark the final audition for both signal-callers.
Because if the 23-year-old, despite all the viral highlights and jaw-dropping throws, can’t beat out a quarterback who’s turned the ball over nearly 100 times in six seasons, then maybe he doesn’t deserve to start in this league, either.
And if Daniel Jones performs the way Giants fans expect? All they’ll have to say is ‘we told you so Indy’.