The Giants have become the latest team to make their decisions with respect to 2019 first rounders. Not surprisingly, they declined to pick up the fifth-year option on quarterback Daniel Jones (Twitter link via NFL Network’s Judy Battista). 
Jones, the sixth overall pick and second QB off the board that year, has failed to live up to expectations so far in his career. He has started all but one game during his three years with the team, compiling a 12-25 record. His completion percentage (62.8% overall) and yards per attempt average (6.6) have remained consistent throughout his tenure, representing an underwhelming level of development in his passing ability. That, coupled with a combined 49 turnovers (29 interceptions and 20 lost fumbles) make this the expected move.
Picking up the option would have given Jones a guaranteed 2023 salary of $22.4MM. Instead, he will now enter the 2022 campaign knowing his future with the team will be exclusively tied to his level of play under new head coach Brian Daboll. Ownership has publicly backed the Duke alum as the starter of the immediate future, so this news shouldn’t have an effect on the team’s draft plans.
Meanwhile, the Giants announced that they did exercise the option on defensive linemen Dexter Lawrence. He becomes the fifth player at that position to be retained through 2023 via the option. Without a Pro Bowl to his name, he will earn $10.753MM that season. The 24-year-old has started 41 of 48 career games, putting up solid, if unspectacular, numbers. Overall, he has totalled 145 tackles and nine sacks across his three seasons in the league.
As the Giants head towards a 2022 campaign in which significant improvement is expected, they now have a bit more certainty with respect to 2023 as well.
The right moves to make. Lawrence has been an above average but not great dt and that’s what they get paid. Jones has one more chance to see if he can get better and if not clean break.
This is the guy Washington should have traded for, as he’s likely the next Alex Smith.
Just because his early years look like Alex Smith’s bad years does not mean he’ll blossom into years like Smith’s best ones.
Smith was actually much worse than Jones during his first three years and then missed his entire fourth season with injury.
But yes, I agree. There’s no reason to assume Jones will do anything similar to Smith.
Doubt they would’ve trade him in the division, and doubt he will be next Alex Smith
Next step for the Giants is to trade Jones for late-round draft picks. Maybe this gives the Giants a route toward a QB who’s not tied to the Manning family.
Who plays qb this year?
Nice to see them make the right moves here. Good interior defensive linemen often go unnoticed because they aren’t stat compilers, but they’re also hard to find, so picking up the option on a solid but not spectacular Lawrence is still the right move.
As for Jones, time to put up or shut up. It’s still borderline negligent that the Giants continue to put awful offensive lines in front of him, but Jones has to start overcoming that. Maybe a healthier Barkley can help. Spending a ton of money on receivers obviously wasn’t the cure.
The g-men are going to gets pennies on the dime for Danny
They should trade Daniel jones for baker. Browns save money this year on their back up. Giants can see what baker does who’s clearly better then Jones if baker sucks let him walk next year.
Why would Cleveland do that?
They save 10 million dollars