5 NY Giants heroes who saved Big Blue in the epic win over Arizona
By Zak Musso
1. QB Daniel Jones
I hope Danny Dimes stayed off Twitter at halftime because it was a bloodbath. People were calling for his job, a laughable thought after his second-half performance. Jones led the Giants on four touchdown drives while looking calm, confident, and showing more poise than we have seen at any time in his career.
In the second half, Jones was 17of-21, with 317 total yards and three touchdowns. He made history in the process, doing something no quarterback or player in the NFL has ever done.
In the second half today, the @Giants' Daniel Jones:
— OptaSTATS (@OptaSTATS) September 18, 2023
- threw for 250+ yards
- rushed for 50+ yards
- threw multiple TD passes
- rushed for a TD
- had no turnovers
No other QB in NFL history has done all of that in the second half of a game. pic.twitter.com/CjP4Lovwkm
Jones threw for 233 yards in the second half. Jones was throwing the ball all over the yard, and most importantly, he was looking to throw deep. After watching the Giants' coaching staff conservatively coach Jones his entire career, it was nice to see them let Jones loose. He showed the coaching staff and the NFL world he can make every throw needed.
Daniel Jones was able to push the ball downfield, averaging 9.8 air yards per attempt, 1.4 more than any other game under head coach Brian Daboll.
— Next Gen Stats (@NextGenStats) September 17, 2023
Jones averaged 6.3 air yards per attempt last season in his first year under Daboll, the lowest in the NFL.#NYGvsAZ | #NYGiants
Jones' 59 rushing yards were clutch. He took off and extended drives when nobody was open instead of forcing the ball into coverage. Jones was given excellent protection tonight; shout out to Josh Ezeudu, who was fantastic in his first-ever game at left tackle. They gave Jones time (in the second half), and he diced up the Cardinals defense.
Jones was fiery in the second half, showing a ton of emotion. It was evident that this was his team; he is the leader of this Giants squad and was not going to let them lose a game they needed to have.
READ MORE: 5 takeaways from the NY Giants thrilling win over Arizona