Former New York Giants QB Phil Simms came to the defense of GM Dave Gettleman and the selection of Daniel Jones, saying there was no chance Jones would’ve lasted to the 17th pick.
The New York Giants and GM Dave Gettleman didn’t weren’t exactly praised for the decision to select former Duke QB Daniel Jones with the sixth overall pick of the 2019 NFL Draft. In fact, they were crushed by just about every major media outlet shortly after the selection was made.
The main reason why Gettleman received so much criticism was the theory that the Giants could’ve waited until their second first-round pick, No. 17 overall, to take Jones.
Gettleman came out in defense of his strategy and claimed Jones wouldn’t have lasted that long; predictably, his explanation was dismissed as nothing short of laughable.
Not so fast, my friend.
According to former Giants great, Phil Simms, Gettleman was telling the truth. Simms, in an interview with Rob Lepp of CNN and STATS sports, said he knows for a fact that Jones would not have lasted much longer.
“And, just to dispel any myths – you’re probably the first person I’ll says this to. Daniel Jones, ‘oh ,they should have take him later.’ He was not going to be there,” Simms said. “Everybody just trust me, I know. I know. I know for a fact he would not have been there on the 17th pick that the Giants had.”
You’re either going to trust Simms or you aren’t. The skeptic would suggest Simms is just going to bat for his former team, and that may be true. But his connections in the NFL run pretty deep. There’s no reason to think he’s making this up.
There were several potential matches for Jones, if Simms is to be believed, after the No. 6 overall. The Jaguars, despite signing Nick Foles, may have been interested and the Redskins, who ultimately selected Dwayne Haskins in the first round, were obviously in the quarterback market. The Broncos, who held the 10th pick, selected Drew Lock in the second round but if Jones was still on the board? Maybe they would’ve kept their pick and made him their guy.
We’ll never know.
Jones can silence all the critics by doing what’s expected of every NFL quarterback: play well. He and the rest of his Giants teammates kick off training camp on July 26.