CAN YOU SPARE A DIME?

Joe not ready to judge Danny until QB gets some Big Blue help

Tom Brady might be the greatest quarterback of all time, but the Patriots defenses on his first three Super Bowl teams ranked sixth, first and second in points allowed in the 2001, 2003 and 2004 seasons, respectively.

Joe Judge did not mention Brady by name this week while strongly supporting Daniel Jones in the wake of his two turnovers against the Steelers.

But the Giants’ head coach and longtime former Patriots assistant made clear that it’s important to consider what Jones is working with — and what his team lacks — when evaluating the second-year quarterback.

“I think you have to keep in mind with young quarterbacks in this league, playing quarterback in the National Football League is the toughest job in professional sports, simply put,” Judge said. “You look at the truly great ones that have come through our league, without naming names, just think real carefully about how many of those guys were able to have high degrees of success before they had to truly carry a team. Think about those real great ones that are going to be wearing gold jackets that have played in this league for, call it, 15 to 20 years.

“How many of those guys had the benefit of working with teams that were carried more by defense or the run game or a great arsenal of guys around him that supported him?” Judge asked. “I’m very confident in our team. I’ll just say this specifically on Daniel, obviously there are some things you have to clean up every game. I’ll tell you right now, you watch that tape from the other night, that dude stood in there like a man and delivered that ball down the field. That dude stood in there aggressively, he stood in there tough, stood in there confidently and our team feeds off that. We’re proud to have him on our team.”

Jones was under pressure on 26 of his 48 dropbacks (54.2%), per Pro Football Focus, easily the most of any NFL quarterback in Week 1. He was sacked three times and hit eight times.

The Giants are built to run the ball and be tough on the offensive and defensive lines to take pressure off the young QB. But it became immediately clear in the opener that once again this team might have to put an inordinate amount of pressure on Jones’ shoulders every week.

Carrying a team is light years more difficult, especially at a young age, than being a complementary piece.

This does not excuse Jones’ two turnovers, especially his poor decision at the goal line in the third quarter that swung the game for good.

“The second interception was a situation where I just needed to get the ball out of my hands sooner,” Jones admitted. “Ultimately, I was trying to throw it away, but I needed to make that decision sooner. That was that.”

But overall the Giants’ coaching staff remains very high on him after he completed 26-of-41 passes for 279 yards, two touchdowns to Darius Slayton, and rushed four times for a team-high 22 yards on the ground.

“He did a lot of good things that we can build on, and there are certainly plenty of areas to correct,” offensive coordinator Jason Garrett said. “But his approach is outstanding. He’s a very coachable guy, and we’ll learn from the experience.”

And Judge provides a solid perspective on evaluating Jones under this weekly microscope as a 23-year-old QB: consider what he has around him and what he’s being asked to do.

BIG PLAY SLAY

Plenty of All-Pro clickers — as Saquon Barkley would call them — said during the offseason that Darius Slayton’s eight rookie TD catches in 14 games was not a sustainable total.

Slayton smiled and laughed this week when asked what he thinks of that prevailing opinion after catching two TDs in Week 1.

“Um, I mean, I guess, ya know, I just try to go out there and make plays. I didn’t even really know that was a thing to be honest with you,” he said. “I just try to go out there and make plays and find my way to the end zone as often as possible.”

Slayton and Jones are good friends off the field, as well, but the young receiver also made sure to point out it’s not just abstract chemistry that explains his and Jones’ connection.

“Definitely being open helps the quarterback be more inclined to throw the ball to you, of course,” he said.

Slayton finished with six catches for 102 yards and two TDs on nine targets, all teamhighs (tied with Barkley on the targets and catches).