East Rutherford, NJ – New York Giants and Quarterback Daniel Jones He is satisfied with his health. They don’t seem to have any doubts about his neck injury even though it cost him his last six games last season.
“Yes, I’ll be up and ready to go,” Jones said Monday during a conference call on the first day of his off-season training program.
The team and midfielder have been consistent in their belief that the neck injury that Jones suffered late last year would not be a long-term problem. A source said Jones was in fact about to return before the end of the season in early January.
But the Giants have time now, and new coach Brian Dabol said last week that Jones should be “ready to go” for an off-season programme. Jones was there on Monday the first day after spending the weekend cheering for his brother Bateswho was on the Duke men’s basketball team that made it to the Final Four.
The first phase of the Offseason program is mostly strength and conditioning. Jones won’t need to face any contact until pre-season in August, so there’s no real necessity to get him out of contact now or anytime soon. He has been training both locally and at the team facility without any restrictions most of the time off season.
Jones is poised to be the team’s primary midfielder again this coming season, even with a new general manager and coach in place. New York also signed a veteran Tyrod Taylor to a two-year contract last month.
The Giants have continued to reaffirm their faith in Jones throughout the season. He was declared an unambiguous player by the team’s officers last week at the NFL Annual Meetings. This came shortly after owner Jon Mara said the organization “did everything they could to spoil this kid since he was here” earlier this season.
It’s something that caught Jones’ attention.
“I’m excited. I’m excited to go here. I appreciate the support,” he said. “But my job is to do my part, prepare this team, prepare myself to play as best I can, and put this team in a position to win matches. So I take that responsibility very seriously and that’s what I focus on.”
The Giants haven’t won many games since Jones was the No. 6 pick overall in the 2019 NFL Draft. They are 12-25 with him at the start, and he has 49 turns in 38 career games.
Jones, 24, is entering the final year of his contract with the Apprentice. The giants have to make a decision on whether to exercise the $22.4 million fifth-year option for 2023. General Manager Joe Shuen said last week that it is a discussion that still needs to be had.
Jones doesn’t seem too concerned.
“There will be a time and a place for those talks,” he said. “We’ll see and we’ll take care of that. We’ll do it when he comes. But I’m focused on what we’re doing here and preparing and making the most of every day we have here together.”
Monday marked a significant day as it was the first time that players could get their hands on the new rules of the game. Jones and the rest of his teammates can research what new coach Brian Dabol has put together.
There is a lot to accomplish.
“For me, like I said, my focus is getting myself ready,” Jones said. “I take full responsibility for the way I played. We didn’t win enough games. We didn’t score enough points. We didn’t do things well enough.
“I take responsibility for that as a midfielder. You play a big role in these things. That is what I focus on. I work on improving myself and making sure I am ready to attack and the team to go every day.”
