Daniel Jones intercepted twice in New York Giants’ loss

New York Giants quarterback Daniel Jones was a disaster from the beginning in his return from a torn anterior cruciate ligament after throwing a pair of interceptions in the first half on Saturday in a 28-10 loss against the Houston Texans at NRG Stadium which included one that was intercepted and returned to score an interception.

By Jordan Raanan

Aug 17, 2024 09:40 PM

 

New York Giants quarterback Daniel Jones had a disastrous start in his return from a torn ACL when he threw a pair of first-quarter interceptions on Saturday in a 28-10 loss to the Houston Texans at NRG Stadium, including one that was returned for a touchdown.

In the first quarter of activity since tearing the ACL on the right knee to November Jones was intercepted twice in his first three drives. Jones also nearly throwing an interception on his first throw of the contest.

“Obviously first quarter didn’t go how we wanted it,” Jones informed reporters. “Bad decision and a bad throw [on the interception for a touchdown].”

Jones completed the game with 138 yards on 11-of-18 passing without touchdowns and two interceptions. He led two touchdown drives during the final quarter.

But it was during the Giants on their first drive of the game that Jones made a throw that cost him. He was under pressure by Houston’s Derek Barnett on an off-side in the final zone, and was at risk of being confronted to prevent a safety. While Barnett resting on the ground, Jones irresponsibly floated a throw to tight end Theo Johnson in the left flat.

The ball landed on Texans Safety Jalen Pitre in the chest on the Giants 6 yard line. Pitre intercepted the ball for the perfect interception, and then waltzed to the line of scrimmage to score the touchdown.

Jones admitted after the game that he could have thrown it at the receiver’s feet. It was a terrible error that even veteran quarterbacks should never make.

“Made a poor decision backed up,” coach Brian Daboll said.

On the Giants next play, Jones tried to hit well-protected wide receiver Jalin Hyatt on the right sideline. Houston outstanding cornerback Derek Stingley Jr. He was running stride for stride and made a fantastic diving interception.

This didn’t bother Daboll as much. Daboll believed that the throw was the right choice however, his quarterback threw the ball too far in the middle. This allowed Stingley to get the ball back.

It seems that the Giants and Jones were willing to put it down to being a player who became a great player.

Jones did rebound before the half-time break but by the time halftime was over, the Texans were primarily using backups on defense. He swung deep down along the left-hand sideline, partnering with Wide receiver Darius Slayton for an impressive 44-yard gain, which brought the ball to the 1-yard line on the next drive of the 2nd quarter. Devin Singletary ran through the goal line to score a touchdown a couple of minutes after.

The Giants later added a field goal in a two-minute drive right before halftime.

“It felt good to execute and move the ball there in the two-minute drive,” Jones said. “Guys made some big-time plays out there.”

One of them was the rookies was wide receiver Malik Nabers. He caught four balls for 54 yards during the game, and made an impressive leaping catch close to the sideline in the second half to create for the goal on field.

There was no one willing to attribute Jones slow start to the rust. However, Jones had not been playing following the injury he sustained on on Nov. 5 in the game against the Las Vegas Raiders. This was the first game played in a live setting, almost nine months later, that defense allowed players to attack the quarterback.

The most important thing is that Jones was a good runner and scored one run that lasted 12 yards. Jones didn’t take a lot of hit and was not sacked. He came out of the incident unscathed.

“I feel very well physically. It felt really good on my knee,” Jones said. “Excited to be able to go out and play. I am grateful to all those who have helped me to reach this point. The doctors, trainers and the staff who have assisted. It was fun being in the field.”

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