Mara ‘happy’ with Jones, wants ‘big step forward’

HACKENSACK, N.J. — New York Giants co-owner John Mara doesn’t have any regrets about signing quarterback Daniel Jones last year, even if the team flirted with finding his potential replacement this offseason.

Jones, who signed a four-year, $160 million contract last year, had two touchdown passes and six interceptions while playing in just six games because of neck and knee injuries, including a torn ACL in his right knee.

“Listen, I’m still happy we gave him that contract because I felt he played really well for us in ’22,” Mara said during an event to unveil a mural at the Hackensack Medical Center to celebrate the team’s 100th season. “Last year he got hurt and, let’s be honest, when he was playing, we weren’t blocking anybody. So let’s give him a chance with a better offensive line and some weapons around him and see what he can do.”

The Giants seriously inquired about moving into the top three of the draft with their eye on a quarterback, particularly Drake Maye if the New England Patriots were willing to make a trade. But the price proved too steep.

Instead, the Giants stuck with Jones and drafted LSU wide receiver Malik Nabers with the sixth overall pick to give him a weapon on offense.

“I was nervous about giving up too much to go get a quarterback,” Mara said. “I was prepared to let [general manager Joe Schoen and coach Brian Daboll] do that if that is what they wanted to do. We made a decision to stay with Daniel and add a weapon for him, and I think that is going to work out for us.”

Jones may have stayed, but it was an offseason of change for the Giants. They allowed running back Saquon Barkley and safety Xavier McKinney to walk via free agency. Barkley latched on with the rival Philadelphia Eagles; McKinney with the Green Bay Packers.

It was revealed on “Hard Knocks: Offseason with the New York Giants” that Mara wasn’t fully on board with the decision to let Barkley leave. He admitted seeing Barkley land in Philadelphia would make him lose sleep.

Nonetheless, Mara didn’t interfere.

“Every year there is going to be a personnel decision that I am not 100% in favor of,” Mara said. “But at the end of the day, you let the general manager and the coach, particularly if they have a unified conviction, make the decisions and then bitch about it later.

“That was the decision they made. No, I wasn’t crazy about it. I didn’t want to lose him, but I understood what their philosophy was and you have to let them do their jobs.”

Schoen and Daboll now head into a critical Year 3 with a revamped roster lacking star power. They surprisingly made the playoffs in their first season, before struggling to a 6-11 record last year. The Giants reworked their roster, trading for edge rusher Brian Burns, drafting Nabers and signing three potential starting offensive linemen (John Runyan Jr., Jermaine Eluemunor and Greg Van Roten).

Now it’s time to see if it correlates to an improved product on the field. Or perhaps it might take another year of restocking the roster, including at the quarterback position.

“It’s hard to articulate my expectations,” Mara said. “Obviously you want to show significant improvement over last year, but I’m not going to make any significant guarantees or demands or anything like that. They know what I want to see. I have a lot of confidence in this particular team. The communication is great and I think we’ve added some good pieces. It’s time to show it.”

That doesn’t necessarily mean the Giants need to win a specific number of games or make the playoffs to view the season as a success. That is always more of a feel for Mara once the season concludes.

He still doesn’t seem to view this as a long-term build.

“I don’t know how to quantify that. I want to walk off the field at the end of the season feeling like we’re moving in the right direction,” Mara said. “We really are. We have a great foundation here. We have every reason to be optimistic.

“I expect us to take a big step forward this year.”