There won’t be too many changes when the Giants and Washington Commanders face one another again this Sunday, two weeks removed from their previous meeting at MetLife Stadium. That means there won’t be too many surprises on either side, especially when it comes to New York quarterback Daniel Jones.
The fourth-year QB threw for 200 yards on a day when he completed 25 of his 31 pass attempts and ran for 71 yards the last time New York and Washington met. With a second opportunity between two NFC East rivals, Commanders head coach Ron Rivera told local Washington media that his team needs to do a better job of containing Jones.
“I think just from the things that we got from the game is we have to do a better job at containing their quarterback,” Rivera said, according to Commander Country. “Daniel (Jones) has done a nice job. He’s an elusive runner. He’s got a good arm, can make pretty much any of the throws. We’ve gotta be able to counter him. We gotta be good against the run. I think that helps us a lot. And then when they throw the ball, we gotta make sure we’re good in coverage.”
Jones has remained a big reason why the Giants have found themselves in a position to play meaningful football this late in the season. Jones, who is in the final year of his contract, completed 247 of the 374 attempts he’s had this season and his 66% completion percentage is the best he has had as a Giant.
Jones’s 12 touchdown passes are also the most he’s had since his rookie season when he threw 24.
While the players on the opposite change from year to year and games can be different every time you face a team, Jones had a successful run against the Commanders. Jones has gone 4-1-1 in six career games against Washington and is 2-1 at FedEx Field in three games there.
The Giants QB told reporters at his locker that he liked the stadium, but there wasn’t anything in particular that has made him play well there.
“Yeah, I think so,” Jones said when asked if having success there can help going into Sunday’s game. “But, you know, every game is different. Every matchup is different. You know, this one will be different than the one a couple of weeks ago, too. So, yeah, we’ll come out and be ready to go.”
The focus on Jones isn’t just from Rivera and the Commanders, but also from those watching him intently this year who follow the Giants. Jones’ contract is up at the end of the season and there hasn’t been any indication yet if New York will keep him beyond this year.
The 25-year-old has played well enough this year to make the decision hard on general manager Joe Schoen and head coach Brian Daboll on whether to move on or not. Earlier this week, Newsday reported that the Giants were not in a rush to determine what they would do with Jones in the offseason and that the next four games won’t determine his fate.
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Still, strong performances out of Jones are sure to help his case to remain in East Rutherford beyond this season. However, at least publically, that’s the furthest thing on Jones’ mind going into Sunday.
“I think my mindset has been the same the whole way,” Jones said. “I don’t think it changes now just because we’re later in the season. I’m gonna focus on playing as well as I can and when the season’s over I’ll look back and have probably a more complete thought about that. But yeah, just trying to play as well as I can.”
