Not only has Daniel Jones been benched, but he’s been sent to the bottom of the depth chart.
In announcing that Tommy DeVito is taking over as the starting quarterback on Monday, Giants head coach Brian Daboll revealed that Drew Lock will remain the backup while Jones, 27, will be the third-stringer.
“Those are never easy conversations,” Daboll said of speaking with his quarterbacks Monday morning. “After evaluating a bunch of things and looking at a lot of tape — and being around Tommy last year where he created a little bit of a spark for us — that’s the reason why we’re going with Tommy.”
Jones, the No. 6 overall pick by the Giants in 2019, signed a four-year, $160 million contract with the team in 2023 after leading them to the playoffs in Daboll’s first year as the head coach.
The deal includes a $23 million injury guarantee, so if he were to get hurt and couldn’t pass a physical by March, the Giants’ dead-cap charge from releasing Jones this offseason would balloon from $22 million to $45 million.
That likely plays a role in Jones being dropped to No. 3 on the depth chart.
The Giants are 2-8 coming out of their bye week, with Jones throwing for 2,070 yards, eight touchdowns and seven interceptions.
“We’re obviously not playing the way any of us want to play — and that’s on all of us,” Daboll said. “But felt like this was a decision we needed to make here and try to spark things, change things up.”
DeVito, 26, started six games last year when Jones was injured and finished the season with 1,101 yards, eight touchdowns and three interceptions while the Giants went 3-3 in his starts.
The Giants host the Buccaneers on Sunday before visiting the Cowboys on Thanksgiving.