Brian Burns Lauds ‘Cool Dude’ Daniel Jones

Thanks to the latter’s transfer to the New York Giants, quarterback Daniel Jones isn’t outside linebacker Brian Burns’ problem anymore.

New York’s franchise quarterback is entering a critical season under center in that he’s not only coming off a torn ACL, but he’s also coming back from a disastrous 2023 season that, while not all his fault, didn’t exactly go the way Jones likely expected. 

But according to Burns, a healthy Jones is still very much an asset, especially given his dual skill set, which the veteran defender lauded during the Giants’ organized team activities in East Rutherford last week.

“Getting to know him as a guy, he’s a cool dude,” Burns said. “Before, I didn’t know him at all. As an opponent, we always honored his athleticism. That was something we keyed in on. He definitely burned me to the sideline once–please don’t play that clip!”

Burns was referring to a showdown between the Giants and the Carolina Panthers from September 2022. In that game, Jones eluded Burns on a fourth-down scramble that kept a Giants scoring drive alive in an eventual 19-16 Giants victory.

An aura of tepidness lingers over the Giants’ passing situation: Jones’s spot atop the quarterbacks’ depth chart seems relatively assured after the Giants passed on adding aerial talents in the opening round of last month’s draft. 

However, a good part of the Giants fanbase has grown tired of Jones’ presence and is seeking to move on. Meanwhile, Jones has been endorsed multiple times by head coach Brian Daboll and general manager Joe Schoen, who have said that once the quarterback is fully cleared to do everything following his ACL rehab, the starting job is his. 

Jones is currently limited this spring to individual drill work, 7-on-7s, and working against air (no defense in front of him).  The former Duke gunslinger has repeatedly stressed his belief that he will be ready for the start of the regular season and that he also hopes to be fully cleared to do everything by the time training camp opens in late July.  

Burns spoke of his respect for Jones’s journey to date, which has featured no shortage of adversity. The aforementioned win over Burns and the Panthers, for example, was one of the first catalysts behind an unexpected New York playoff surge, the first such showing for Jones, the sixth overall pick in the 2019 draft.

“He’s a true competitor,” raved Burns. “I haven’t really got to see him on the field yet because he’s going through whatever he’s going through, but (I’m) looking forward to it.”

To Burns’ point, Jones continues to stand among the NFL’s most illustrious rushing threats listed as a quarterback: even with last season’s injury (which limited him to six games), Jones ranks sixth among quarterbacks in rushing yards with 1,914 over the past six seasons.

And although he’s a season removed from 2022, which was his first fully healthy season–he missed the regular-season finale due to a coach’s decision to sit the starters once the Giants locked up a postseason berth–Jones had himself his finest year as a pro in 2022.

That season, he  among his peers who had a minimum of 300 passing attempts, 12th in passing yards, and first in the fewest interceptions thrown. That performance, combined with Jones’s leading the Giants to their first postseason win since 2011, led to his getting a four-year, $160 million contract.

With last year having come apart at the seams not just for Jones but for the entire offense, the hope is that an improved offensive line and the addition of receiver Malik Nabers, the team’s first-round draft pick, will help Jones get back to being the quarterback he was in 2022 versus the one he was in 2023.