Officially the New York Giants on Monday Quarterback Daniel Jones on the benchthereby demoting him to the QB3 spot and effectively ending his career at East Rutherford.
It was a move many expected after a Week 10 debacle in Germany against the Carolina Panthers, but one that was followed by a more controversial decision.
Instead of moving Drew Lock into the starting role and using Tommy DeVito as his replacement, the Giants instead promoted DeVito to QB1 to provide a spark.
“After evaluating a lot of things and watching a lot of tape last year and being with Tommy where he gave us a little spark, that's why we're going with Tommy,” head coach Brian Daboll told reporters.
“Drew will be the replacement. Continue to work with him. He was a real professional, just like Daniel. It's never easy to have a conversation with the players. But we felt like this was a necessary step for us and we look forward to working with Tommy and getting him ready for the game against Tampa.”
Daboll wouldn't elaborate on why Jones was demoted to QB3 and will be inactive for the rest of the season, but the reasons are obvious. Hanging over them is an injury clause and a guaranteed salary of $23 million in 2025. Acknowledging that this would cause some issues with the NFLPA, the coach tried to clear things up with his comments.
Anyone can accept this answer with a wink and a nod. We know it.
But why DeVito over Lock, who received a one-year, $5 million deal in the offseason? After all, DeVito has been a healthy scratch for the last 10 games.
As they continued to be pressed, Daboll said after reviewing the film, they suddenly realized that DeVito was their best quarterback.
“I wanted to take my time and watch a lot of tapes. Not just this year, last year too, some other things too. And try to make the best decision we can for our team. That’s what I did,” he said.
Uh-huh. We are sure it has nothing to do with it potential escalators in Lock's contract or the fact that the Giants have the third-smallest remaining cap space in the NFL. It was just a “football decision”.
If that were true, you have to wonder why the Giants didn't realize this in their first ten games.
Jones will likely be cut after this season, Lock will become an unrestricted free agent and DeVito will become an exclusive rights free agent. It's entirely possible – if not plausible – that none of the three will return.
“We're just focused here on this week and the decision we made to get these guys ready to go. That’s our focus,” Daboll said when asked about the future of Jones and the other quarterbacks.
The irony is that DeVito was probably the best choice, but how the Giants have handled him so far, Lock's contracts and Daboll's answers make it a spectacle. This casts doubt on general manager Joe Schoen and Daboll and their ability to accurately assess quarters. It also calls into question their ability to handle contracts and staff. After all, this is far from the first time that personnel decisions have caused a stir.
And what if DeVito, who will be playing behind an improved offensive line compared to his last time on the field, actually goes out and wins? It might save the regime, but it would cost them the chance at a true franchise quarterback.
Even when the current Giants regime makes the right move, they find a way to screw it up. And that can't make co-owners John Mara and Steve Tisch happy.
