Giants Daniel Jones’ contract saga has taken an unexpectedly laughable twist: Jones is asking to be paid on par with the most elite quarterbacks in the league — which he’s not.
After leading the New York Giants to their first playoff win since 2011, quarterback Daniel Jones appears determined to bankrupt the franchise and send a young and promising playoff-contending team into utter shambles.
New York did not exercise Jones’ fifth-year option in his rookie contract last year, making it all the more difficult to fit Jones in the salary cap before he hits free agency.
The 25-year-old recorded his most productive season in 2022 with career-high passing and rushing yard totals, proving he could be an effective two-way quarterback even with the Giants’ lack of a talented receiving corps.
On the heels of a triumphant winning season, Jones appeared to want to stay in New York, and the feelings were mutual: general manager Joe Schoen told the media he wanted to build the team around Jones for the future.
Well, the future will apparently come at a $45 million cost. That’s Daniel Jones’ reported asking price per Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio, and it’s absolutely bonkers.
Rub your eyes and weep.
Giants quarterback Daniel Jones cannot be serious about his latest contract demands
For reference, only five quarterbacks in the league command an average salary of $45 million a year, one of whom is Super Bowl LVII winner Patrick Mahomes. Daniel Jones may think he is Patrick Mahomes, but he is far from it. This fact does not need to be explained.
The other four guys are Aaron Rodgers, Russell Wilson, Kyler Murray, and Deshaun Watson. Watson’s situation was unprecedented, Wilson and Murray’s teams are likely shaking their heads at those extensions, and Rodgers will more than likely rework his contract or leave Green Bay.
Jones recently switched agents presumably to try and secure more money, but he’s only making a bigger embarrassment out of himself. Previous reports had Jones commanding, at most, $35 million per season, which even then was bordering the limits of rationality.
In response to Jones’ ludicrous demands, the most sensible thing for the Giants to do would be to place the franchise tag on him, setting themselves back $32.4 million in 2023.
That would, however, prevent New York from franchise-tagging running back Saquon Barkley, who would presumably leave for a more lucrative contract elsewhere. And the Giants would then wait another decade before they win a playoff game.
Congrats, Daniel Jones. You’ve somehow managed to uplift the entire city of New York and then make them hate you in the span of a year.