The New York Giants quarterback on the bench Daniel Jones earlier this week, and he was expected to remain a backup until the team moves on from him this offseason. However, the Giants are immediately parting ways with their former No. 6 overall pick.
On Friday, the Giants announced that Jones had requested his release and that the team would grant Jones his request. Jones The waivers officially went into effect on Saturdaybut he remains unlikely to be called upon due to the four-year, $160 million contract he signed in March 2023.
Giants President John Mara released a statement about his former quarterback:
“Daniel came to me this morning and asked if we would release him. We agreed that this would be the best thing for him and the team.”
Daniel was a great representative of our organization, first class in every way. His handling of this situation yesterday is an example of this. We are all disappointed with how things turned out.
We really appreciate and appreciate Daniel. We wish him nothing but the best for the future.”
Jones broke his silence He said it was an honor to play for this franchise while taking responsibility for the fact that there have been more lows than highs in the last six years.
“The opportunity to play for the New York Giants was truly a dream come true and I am extremely grateful … for the opportunity to play here,” Jones said. “The Giants are truly a first-class organization and I have nothing but genuine respect and appreciation for the people who built them and help carry on the tradition. I have met so many professionals and built relationships that will truly last a lifetime. Thank you very much.” To all my teammates, coaches and staff who have done so much for me over the last six years. There were some great times, but we all wish there had been more of them.
The reason the Giants kept Jones on the roster until this offseason (and why they benched him in the first place) had to do with money. As Spotrac points this outThis decision to part ways with Jones now and put the entire saga behind them leaves the Giants with dead cap hits of $47.1 million in 2024 and $22.1 million in 2025 . But the Giants are freeing up $19.4 million in cap space for next year. Overall, there wasn't much difference between Jones' release now and his release the day after .
But if Jones were fired after June 1st, NFL Media reported that the Giants would take $11.1 million in dead cap hits in 2025 and 2026 and save $30.5 million in 2025. Before Friday, that was the expected outcome — since the Giants were able to spread the dead money over two years. From a business perspective, firing Jones at this point is not the ideal move given the 2025 salary cap, but the organization wanted to do right by Jones.
Jones' fall in the last five days has been dramatic. He was 2-8 as the starter this year and completed 63.3% of his passes for 2,070 yards, eight touchdowns and seven interceptions. It was clear that the Giants had made the decision to bench Jones to protect themselves from the $23 million injury guarantee in his contract, but general manager Joe Schoen claimed it was a “football decision ” been. Jones was demoted from QB1 to QB3/QB4 to ensure he wouldn't see the field, which was a story in itself, and then he was seen playing scout team safety at practice, which led to criticism on social media .
The Giants may have had enough of the negative headlines, but this decision also allows Jones to continue his career. After clearing waivers, Jones can sign with any team.