New York Giants quarterback Daniel Jones was better in Week 2 against the Commanders (1-1) on Sunday and played well enough for the Giants to win. However, the Giants, who lost their kicker Graham Gano on the opening kickoff, which impacted the outcome, fell to the Commanders 21-18 at Northwest Stadium.
The Giants (0-2) lost Gano, who came into the game with a groin injury, to a hamstring injury. Without Gano, the Giants used punter Jamie Gillan to handle kicking duties, and after Devin Singletary’s seven-yard touchdown run in the first quarter, Gillian would miss the extra point.
From there, after each New York touchdown, they would go for two; unfortunately, they would not convert each time.
Late in the game, with the score tied at 18 and New York at the Commanders’ 22-yard line, the Giants decided to go for it instead of kicking the field on fourth and four. Unfortunately, standout rookie Malik Nabers, who had 10 catches for 127 yards and touchdown, would drop a pass that would have been a first down. Ultimately, Commanders kicker Austin Seibert would make his seventh field goal at the buzzer.
New York had the extra roster spot to elevate kicker Jude McAtamney, but they didn’t, and it cost them the game.
“We thought Graham [Gano] would be okay,” Daboll said. “He got hurt chasing down a [runner]. It was a hamstring. He didn’t hurt his groin. He hurt his hamstring.”
While they lost, Jones was better than a week ago, when he had two interceptions. On Sunday, Jones was 16/28 for 178 yards and two touchdowns, and most importantly, he did not have any turnovers, and Daboll was happy with his performance.
“He went where he was supposed to go with the football,” Daboll said. “He saw the field well. Threw it to the guy he was supposed to throw it to. Gave them chances. We had chances on other plays, too, that we didn’t connect on. I was proud of him. I was proud of the way he competed. I was proud of the way he prepared during the week and I was proud of his mental toughness. I thought he did a nice job.”
On Saturday, an ESPN report discussed Jones’ injury guarantee of $23 million next season, so if Jones, who is coming off a torn ACL in 2023, is injured and cannot pass a physical next offseason, $23 of his $30 million salary for 2025 would be guaranteed, which would be disastrous if the Giants are looking to move on from him at season’s end.
According to Jones, who signed a four-year, $160 million contract in 2022, he’s not concerned.
“To be honest, this is the first I’ve heard about the report and I’ll let the team handle that,” he said. “I don’t concern myself with what comes out and will leave that up to the team to handle. My job is to play good football and help us come out with a win.”
The Giants did not lose to the Commanders because of Jones; they lost because they couldn’t stop the run(215 yards) and did not have a kicker. New York had an available roster spot, but they didn’t activate another kicker.
The following six games, starting with the Browns next week, are against playoff-caliber teams (Cowboys, Seahawks, Bengals, Eagles, and Steelers), so things could get a lot worse before they get better.
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