Pro Football Rumors
Admitting defeat on Daniel Jones may have come too late for the regime that inherited Dave Gettleman‘s handpicked Eli Manning successor. After three seasons tied to the inconsistent quarterback, Joe Schoen and Brian Daboll may be battling uphill to keep their jobs before their preferred Jones replacement takes the reins. Jones being the Giants’ primary starter for the first three Daboll-Schoen seasons runs the risk of, given the direction of the team since its 2022 divisional-round cameo, the QB effectively dragging the decision-making duo out of town.
More elements, of course, are mixed into the buildup to Schoen and Daboll’s fourth Giants season; none, however, approach the quarterback matter. The team’s 2024 decisions at the position bled into 2025, where a worse draft class awaited. The Giants’ QB woes did move them into position for Abdul Carter, after one seminal Drew Lock showing took them out of Cam Ward territory, and their pass rush certainly has the personnel to be among the NFL’s best. But how the team’s Russell Wilson–Jaxson Dart (feat. Jameis Winston) QB depth chart performs will determine if John Mara will need to make another regime change.
This offseason produced undesirable endings for a few parties on the quarterback carousel. Aaron Rodgers preferred the Vikings; he ended up a Steeler. The Steelers aimed to either re-sign Justin Fields or manage a trade for Matthew Stafford, and they were then subjected to a three-month wait by their third choice. The Raiders did not end up with the piece they wanted, as the Rams retained Stafford via another reworked contract. Tom Brady‘s aim to avoid Sam Darnold led the Raiders to acquire Geno Smith from the Seahawks, who then landed this year’s top QB free agent.
As Seattle appeared the most satisfied from the veteran passer it acquired, New York did not double as a desirable destination. The Giants were in on Darnold and Stafford, making an aggressive contract offer — in the $90MM guarantee neighborhood — to the 37-year-old passer after asking about him at the 2024 deadline. But the Giants’ Stafford interest hinged on the Rams being OK starting over, which never made much sense considering their place as a top NFC contender, and the Super Bowl-winning QB being fine heading to a team in much...
