Ballad of Daniel Jones Has Become a Breakup Tune in NY

Monday could be the beginning of the end for Daniel Jones with the New York Giants. 

If only the shift away from Jones wasn’t already underway before he takes a single snap against the Steelers on Monday Night Football.

The Giants are married to bringing back GM Joe Schoen and head coach Brian Daboll, at least that’s the line from ownership with midseason approaching.

There are no such guarantees for Jones.

It became abundantly apparent Daboll knew Jones wasn’t the guy during the Hard Knocks inside look at the Giants’ approach to free agency and the draft. Daboll salivated over the chance to trade up and draft LSU quarterback Jayden Daniels, but Schoen’s Hail Mary pre-draft call to the Patriots at No. 3 and the Commanders in front of them hit immediate dead ends.

RELATED: Bears Cornerback Tyrique Stevenson Painfully Demonstrates Why You Don’t Stop Playing Until The Game Is Over

There’s no U-turn in store for the Giants this season, and there’s no walking back Daboll’s unapologetic intent to find a better fit at quarterback.

Some of the shortcomings for the Giants aren’t on Jones. New York walked away from running back Saquon Barkley, who is currently second in the NFL in rushing (766 yards), and never made a call to free agent Derrick Henry.

The Giants have 711 rushing yards as a team and 10 total touchdowns in seven games. They’ve scored 10 points combined the past two games and haven’t even hit 100 total points for the season. The Detroit Lions have 102 points in the second quarter alone and 234 total this season.

Without Barkley, Devin Singletary was cast as the No. 1 back. He has 239 rushing yards this season, just one short of the Commanders’ third-leading rusher Austin Ekeler (240).

Henry is the league leader in rushing and on pace to approach 2,000 yards in 2024.

Instead of one of the proven veterans, the centerpiece of the New York offense is … rookie wide receiver Malik Nabers.

No doubt Nabers looks like a huge hit. Drafted with the pick Daboll would’ve packaged to the Commanders to get Daniels, he’s one shining reason for optimism around Big Blue.

Without a stable offensive line and untested fill-ins at critical positions such as left tackle and running back, Jones is tied for 26th in the NFL with six TD passes.

Because of the offensive line woes, the Giants are stuck operating a 2010 offense in 2024.

Daboll would not veer far from his established lane in coming to Jones’ defense after the QB was perturbed about being benched in the fourth quarter last week.

RELATED: Joe Buck Feels ‘Sick’ Over Call He Made Prior To NFL Star’s Gruesome Season-Ending Injury

The current Giants’ regime didn’t draft Jones, the No. 6 pick in the 2019 draft. That was Dave Gettlemen’s mastery. But they did make the call to move forward with him at a time when there was reasonable debate about whether a new deal with Jones made sense.

Now it seems Jones is reading the big-block handwriting on the wall that the Giants are ready to move on two years into a $140 million contract.

Russell Wilson, who visited the Giants before signing with the Steelers, Sam Darnold, Justin Fields, Jameis Winston, Mac Jones, and Trey Lance are among the current quarterbacks headed for free agency in March.

Colorado’s Shadeur Sanders, Jalen Milroe of Alabama, and Texas A&M’s Conor Weigman are potential prospects in the 2025 draft the Giants could consider.

Long before Sunday’s game against the Steelers kicks off, the Giants were already jonesing for a replacement for their current option.