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NFL Rumors: Daniel Jones, Giants Relationship Was ‘A Bit Awkward’ Before Benching

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NFL Rumors: Daniel Jones, Giants Relationship Was ‘A Bit Awkward’ Before Benching

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The New York Giants made the move to bench Daniel Jones coming out of its Week 11 bye in favor of Tommy DeVito, a move that likely foreshadows the end of the Jones’ era with the organization.

Even before that decision, however, the relationship between the sides reportedly had grown “a bit awkward,” multiple sources told Jordan Schultz of Fox Sports, “especially with the organization publicly exploring other quarterback options, including during Hard Knocks this past offseason.”

“It was like flirting with someone new while your date is still at the table,” a source told Schultz.

It was very clear on Hard Knocks that the Giants were interested in adding a rookie quarterback had they been able to move up in the draft:

Ralph Vacchiano @RalphVacchiano

Probably not a good time to remind Giants fans that on Hard Knocks, Brian Daboll made it clear he wanted GM Joe Schoen to try to trade up for Jayden Daniels.
It was never going to happen, but still … https://t.co/PdG5H2iChX

Ralph Vacchiano @RalphVacchiano

Giants QB Daniel Jones on the conversation — which wasn’t shown on Hard Knocks — when GM Joe Schoen said he might try to trade up for a QB in the draft:
“You’re not excited about it, but they have a job to do. You know, it is what it is. … But it’s not a fun conversation.” pic.twitter.com/DX1FD4GY0i

The Giants, of course, stayed put at No. 6 and ended up selecting wide receiver Malik Nabers, who looks like a star-in-the-making. But the Giants toyed around with prospective trades up the board enough that it was easy to speculate that the front office wasn’t sold on Jones as the long-term answer.

Awkward for relationships within the building, perhaps, but that context made the decision to ultimately bench Jones entirely predictable.

Publicly, the Giants can justify the decision based on his 2-8 record this season, 24-44-1 record in parts of six seasons and his mediocre stats in 2024 (2,070 passing yards, eight touchdowns, seven interceptions, 63.3 completion percentage), which largely mirror his generally mediocre play throughout his career.

Internally, the front office was almost assuredly swayed by financial reasons, ensuring he never triggers an injury guarantee in his contract:

Tom Pelissero @TomPelissero

Some cap math …
Daniel Jones was due $30.5 million in 2025 with a $41.605M cap number. But the #Giants owe him no more cash beyond this season if they release (or trade) him before March 16, when $12M of his $23M injury guarantee would convert to a full guarantee.
If they… pic.twitter.com/1FWIxyXCzm

Albert Breer @AlbertBreer

Giants coach Brian Daboll says on a conference call that Tommy DeVito will start AND Drew Lock will be his backup. Again, that puts the team in a place where it won’t have to play Daniel Jones, and risk his $23 million injury guarantee.

Field Yates @FieldYates

The financials in play for the Giants by (presumably) moving on from Daniel Jones this offseason:
Cap space created: $19.395M
Dead cap incurred: $22.21M

Head coach Brian Daboll maintained that the decision was a football one.

“The coaches and I met every day last week and into the weekend and we evaluate the performance of the players,” he told reporters. “We made a decision based off that to go with Tommy.”

But if DeVito—who has thrown for 1,101 yards, eight touchdowns and three interceptions in nine career games, completing 64 percent of his passes and leading the team to a 3-3 mark in his six starts—really gave the Giants the better chance to win over Jones, why has he spent the majority of the season inactive as the third-stringer while Jones started and Drew Lock served as his backup? Why move Jones all the way to QB3 instead of keeping him as DeVito’s backup?

It’s impossible to separate the business implications of Jones’ benching from the decision to do so. If he had been excellent this season and the Giants weren’t already out of the playoff picture, there might be some hope yet that he could be the franchise quarterback going forward and he’d still be starting. But the Giants now seem resigned to a changing of the guard at the position this offseason, making it illogical to risk incurring his injury guarantees in a campaign that is already lost.

From the offseason until now, it’s a decision that has felt inevitable.

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