THE New York Giants decided to roll with Daniel Jones at quarterback this past offseason after signing him to a four-year, $160 million contract in March 2023 that essentially locked them into him for at least the 2024 season.
They dreamed of drafting a franchise quarterback in this year’s draft, hoping to move up from 6th to 3rd overall, but none of the teams that owned those picks had any desire to move back.
Free agency presented a few options, one being Russell Wilson — who wasn’t about to ride the pine trees behind Jones — a player the Giants were locked into. He chose to sign with Pittsburgh, where he now leads the Steelers to the AFC playoffs.
The Giants instead decided to back Jones with Drew Lock on a one-year deal. Lock learned that Jones was the starter and he agreed to sign as a backup.
Lock signed a one-year, $5 million contract. Wilson signed with the Steelers for the veteran minimum – $1.2 million.
On Tuesday, Giants general manager Joe Schoen was asked if he wanted to do anything different with the quarterback position, particularly when it comes to Wilson, who visited them.
“When people are free agents and you go through the process, you do what you do,” he said. “If it’s a good fit for you, then sometimes they come. If it’s not, you can’t get them. So, again, you go through the free agency process, whether it’s any position. And that’s how free agency works and the players decide where they want to go and what they want to do, but some things are out of your control.
It’s now Week 10 and Wilson, who took over for Justin Fields as starter in Week 7, has led the Steelers to three straight wins, including one against the Giants.
Meanwhile, the Giants are 2-8 and are on a five-game streak as they head into their bye. Jones has struggled and the Giants are “evaluating” whether or not they will continue to start him. He has a clause in his contract that provides an injury guarantee that would cost them $23 million if it kicks in.
It was clear last week that Jones had cost them games, performing poorly in the red zone and failing to execute big plays down the field.
Since the Giants are 1-5 in one-score games, better play at the quarterback position could get them to 4-6 or 5-5 instead of 2-8 this season.
Wilson, a Super Bowl championship quarterback who still has gas in the tank, could have been that guy.
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This article was originally published on Giants Wire: Giants’ Joe Schoen has no regrets about QB management this offseason
