Giants saw Daniel Jones decisions they can’t afford’ in preseason debut
HOUSTON Daniel Jones’ first |A|
pass should’ve been intercepted, |B|
and his first true |C|
taste of contact led |D|
to a much bigger |E|
disaster. In his first live |F|
action since tearing the |G|
ACL in his right |H|
leg last November, the |J|
Giants’ franchise quarterback lived |K|
a first-quarter nightmare Saturday |L|
as he threw two |M|
interceptions in the first |O|
13 minutes, including one |P|
that was returned for |Q|
an easy walk-in touchdown. The |R|
results for Jones, head |S|
coach/play-caller Brian Daboll and |U|
the rest of the |V|
starting offense got slightly |Y|
better as the first |Z|
half went on — |A|
and not coincidentally after |B|
the Texans pulled their |C|
defensive starters. “A little shaky |D|
at the start,” Jones |E|
said after a 28-10 |F|
loss to the Texans. |G|
“Knee felt good. It |H|
was fun to be |J|
out there. It didn’t |K|
start perfect, but we |L|
got going, and I |M|
feel good physically. But there |O|
is no hiding Jones’ |P|
final stat line in |Q|
what could be his |R|
only game of the |S|
preseason entering a make-or-break |U|
year: He completed 11 |V|
of 18 passes for |Y|
138 yards and netted |Z|
out a 45.8 passer |A|
rating while playing the |B|
first half “One of the |C|
plans was to call |D|
some play-action and throw |E|
a bunch of deep |F|
balls today to see |G|
how our line does |H|
in a dropback and |J|
feel a little bit |K|
of [pass] rush when |L|
it’s live,” Daboll said. |M|
“Push the ball down |O|
the field, which has |P|
been a point of |Q|
emphasis.” After a game-opening three-and-out |R|
featuring three straight passes |S|
to ease any return-to-action |U|
nerves, Jones started the |V|
second possession backed up |Y|
against the shadow of |Z|
his own end zone |A|
with zero margin for |B|
error. He made a big |C|
one — and there |D|
was no way to |E|
blame this mistake on |F|
the rebuilt offensive line |G|
that marred last season. Jones |H|
held the ball too |J|
long when nothing developed |K|
on second down, which |L|
left him in position |M|
to take a safety. As |O|
he was being dragged |P|
down by Derek Barnett, |Q|
Jones threw a wildly |R|
inaccurate pass behind rookie |S|
Theo Johnson and into |U|
the arms of Jalen |V|
Pitre, who returned it |Y|
for a 5-yard touchdown. “Intentional |Z|
grounding there is a |A|
safety, so just making |B|
sure you dirt it |C|
at his feet,” Jones |D|
said. “Obviously, can’t take |E|
a sack there in |F|
the end zone. But, moments |G|
later, he threw his |H|
second interception, a self-described |J|
“bad throw” to Jalin |K|
Hyatt that Derek Stingley |L|
Jr. undercut for an |M|
interception in single coverage. “He |O|
left [the throw] a |P|
little bit inside,” Daboll |Q|
said. “Decision [was] fine. |R|
Stingley just made a |S|
nice play.” Unlike one week |U|
ago, when Jones sat |V|
and Drew Lock started, |Y|
the Giants made sure |Z|
to get dynamic rookie |A|
receiver Malik Nabers involved |B|
early. Or at least Daboll |C|
tried to by calling |D|
Nabers’ number on two |E|
of the first three |F|
passes, both of which |G|
fell incomplete. Nabers, who was |H|
six days removed from |J|
an ankle sprain, caught |K|
four passes for 54 |L|
yards. He flashed leaping ability, |M|
sideline footwork and his |O|
quick stop-start gear, after |P|
playing 12 snaps without |Q|
a target last week. “Good |R|
to do it in |S|
a game setting, for |U|
sure,” Jones said. “He |V|
made a few really |Y|
nice catches out there.” Texans |Z|
head coach DeMeco Ryans |A|
pulled his defensive starters |B|
after the first quarter, |C|
but it didn’t deter |D|
Daboll from giving his |E|
offense a full half |F|
of work. It could be |G|
the only preseason test |H|
for the starters, given |J|
that Daboll could use |K|
Wednesday’s joint practice against |L|
the Jets as the |M|
big test instead of |O|
Saturday’s final exhibition game. The |P|
Giants gained some momentum |Q|
against the Texans backups, |R|
with Jones directing scoring |S|
drives of 68 and |U|
64 yards. A 44-yard go-route |V|
completion from Jones to |Y|
Darius Slayton set up |Z|
a 1-yard touchdown run |A|
for Devin Singletary. “You don’t |B|
have time to let |C|
[an interception] affect your |D|
confidence or your mood,” |E|
Jones said. “I thought |F|
I did a good |G|
job of that.
