Giants should be extra-motivated to bench Daniel Jones before it bites them

The New York Giants didn't have many expectations heading into this season,due in part to their overall roster. The Giants' quarterback room still had Daniel Jones leading the way after the team tried to trade up in the NFL Draft to land Drake Maye or Jayden Daniels, but to no avail.

The Giants are currently 2-7 on the season, well outside of a playoff spot in a division that contains the 7-2 Washington Commanders and 6-2 Philadelphia Eagles. Jones, much like most of his career, showed signs of promise but haSn't shown enough to be their quarterback for the foreseeable future. With the season looking lost, would the Giants decide to bench Jones?

ESPN's Dan Graziano mentioned in a Week 10 latest buzz column that he doesn't envision Jones being the starting quarterback for the Giants for the remainder of the season due to their game plans late in games. That, and Graziano mentions Jones' 2025 injury guarantee.

"Daniel Jones gets another start for the Giants this weekend against the Panthers in Germany, but after spending some time around the team over the weekend, I'm not convinced he is the locked-in starter for the rest of the season. The Giants barely let Jones throw the ball in the first half against the Commanders, and while he put up some good fourth-quarter numbers, New York was behind and had to throw. The Giants wanted to give Jones this season to determine whether he can still be their long-term answer at quarterback, but they could reach a point where they decide they've seen enough and are convinced to move in a different direction. When and if that happens, that 2025 injury guarantee is going to loom large. I'm not ruling out the possibility of Drew Lock playing for the Giants in 2024."

NFL insider doesn't see Daniel Jones starting for Giants for rest of season

After the 2022 season, when Jones led the Giants to a Wild Card Round win over the Minnesota Vikings, he was rewarded with a four-year, $160 million contract extension. While those financial figures were much ridiculed, the team did have a feasible way to get out of the contract after the 2024 season. However, there is the injury guarantee that looms

Jones has an injury guarantee worth $23 million at the beginning of the 2025 league year. If Jones cannot pass a physical exam, he would be guaranteed $23 million. Not only that, but if Jones is on the roster by the fifth day of the new league year, he will be guaranteed $12 million. This information comes courtesy of Dan Duggan of The Athletic (subscription required).

That gives the Giants a bit more incentive to bench him late in the season a la Derek Carr with the Las Vegas Raiders or Russell Wilson with the Denver Broncos.

This season, Jones has thrown for 1,880 yards, eight touchdowns and five interceptions while completing 63.8 percent of his passes. Additionally, Jones ran or 239 yards and a touchdown on 60 carries.

Giants owner John Mara did give head coach Brian Daboll and general manager Joe Schoen the vote of confidence a couple of weeks ago. With a quarterback search being the most likely plan next offseason, one has to wonder when the Giants will decide to send Jones to the bench in favor of Drew Lock or Tommy DeVito, especially to ensure that injury guarantee doesn't kick in.