How many starts will Daniel Jones make in 2019?
By Bryan Perez
New York Giants rookie QB Daniel Jones isn’t expected to challenge for a starting job early in the 2019 season, but don’t dismiss the possibility of him logging a few starts before the season concludes.
Rarely is a quarterback drafted in the first round of the NFL draft without expectations he’ll start at some point in his rookie season. Gone are the days when quarterbacks could learn from the bench for a year or two while they mature and evolve into a professional. In a league starving for immediate results, first-round passers have to be ready to step in and play right away.
That may not be the case for the New York Giants, however, who selected Duke quarterback Daniel Jones with the sixth overall pick. They have the luxury of an established Super Bowl-winning quarterback still at the top of the depth chart in Eli Manning, and while Manning is certainly in the twilight of his career, there’s no reason to assume he won’t line up as the starter in Week 1 and beyond.
But the Giants aren’t a team likely to challenge for a playoff spot in 2019, and as is usually the case once a season goes south, young players (especially players selected early in the draft) start receiving more playing time as the front office begins to look toward the future.
Enter Jones, who could conceivably be looking at midseason as a potential marker for when his time as New York’s starter begins.
Still, it seems pretty aggressive to project Jones as an eight-game starter. Even seven games seems like a lot, especially if Manning is healthy. And the experts over at ESPN tend to agree.
In a recent article featuring predictions for all 32 teams, Giants writer Jordan Raanan predicted Jones will log less than six starts in 2019.
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He took the under when presented with 5.5 potential starts for Jones.
“It’s hard to imagine the Giants making the switch from veteran Eli Manning to Jones unless they are out of the playoff picture,” Ranaan wrote. “And this year the early season schedule isn’t anywhere near as daunting, so Jones probably will pick up more from the sideline in Year 1.”
A lot will depend on the kind of preseason Jones strings together. The better he looks, the shorter Manning’s leash will be.