For the first time since suffering a season-ending torn ACL last November, New York Giants Quarterback Daniel Jones made his preseason debut against the Houston Texans. There was so much anticipation for the Giants signal-caller debut as he and the Giants are looking to rebound after a disastrous 2023 season where they went 6-11.
Daniel Jones played the entire first half for the Giants and despite an early pick-six that he threw and another interception during his start, his numbers weren’t all that bad in his first live game action. Jones threw for 138 yards on 11 completions and led the Giants on two scoring drives that led to touchdown and field goal. There is much to dissect in his performance, but were some of the major takeaways in his debut?
Jones’ Turnover Problems Continue
Daniel Jones did not start the day out particularly well for the Giants. His first throw of the drive for the Giants was almost an interception followed by the next series for New York ended in Jones making a bad throw while trying to avoid getting sacked in the endzone. That errant throw that he made resulted in a pick-six for Houston’s Jalen Petrie.
Daniel Jones also later in the second quarter tried to throw a ball deep to Wide Receiver Jalin Hyatt that unfortunately found Cornerback Derek Stingley Jr. Jones at one point in the game completed just two passes for 18 yards with those two interceptions on six attempts. It was a troubling sign for the Giants and their fans as their quarterback, who’s in year two of his $160 million deal, did not look sharp out of the gates.
While Daniel Jones did finish his day off on the strong, making some nice throws and looking very mobile in the pocket, it was certainly not something Brian Daboll and company wanted to see in his preseason debut. Daniel Jones has to work on his turnover problems throughout the rest of the preseason or else he could be the ultimate reason why the Giants will be sitting on the couch again come playoff time.
An Early Look At The Jones-Nabers Connection
Oh my, Malik Nabers 😳
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— NFL (@NFL) August 17, 2024
After not getting targeted once in his preseason debut last Thursday, first-round pick and Wide Receiver Malik Nabers finally showed how good he can be, that is, with Jones throwing to him. The Jones and Nabers connection has been on full display during training camp for the Giants as the former LSU Tiger has looked good this summer. If we see Nabers build off his nice game on Saturday with Jones throwing to him, it can be something to watch for this season.
Nabers had four catches for 54 yards on the day including an impressive 21-yard leaping and tip-toe catch near the sidelines. Jones finally has a No. 1 wide receiver to throw to and the chemistry between the two was on full display in the first half of their game against the Texans.
This was a player Daniel Jones needed and could hopefully boost his numbers and have a 20-touchdown season for the first time since his rookie season in 2019. It was exciting to see the two bring their chemistry from training camp into live game action on Saturday. Despite those two interceptions Jones had, an early look at the Daniel Jones and Malik Nabers connection is something to take note of in his preseason debut.
