The New York Giants opened their 100th season with a festive atmosphere to celebrate their franchise, which has won four Super Bowl titles and is a fixture in the league.
Fans eagerly awaited kickoff, during halftime 100 former players were honored on the field and everyone was ready to celebrate a century of New York Giants football.
But the jubilant mood lasted less than 15 minutes, thanks to a terrible performance from Daniel Jones — who threw so many empty, calorie-laden passes that he served as the quarterback equivalent of celery.
Despite the beautiful weather at the New Jersey Meadowlands, things quickly turned bleak. Jones, who is out of contract after this season, offered little of note against the Minnesota Vikings, who were expected to struggle again this year. They lost 28-6.
Jones’ passing was sloppy, his decision-making was compromised and he was caught far too often in sacks (he was hit five times in the backfield). By the end of the game, the six-year veteran was not much inspiration to a stubborn Giants crowd that often booed the offense and went to the gates early.
Daniel Jones (8) threw for just 181 yards on 21 completions in a dismal loss to the Vikings
Jones is in the second year of a contract that has an opt-out after this current season ends
The Giants players and coaches immediately took the blame, admitting that their work was not good enough and that there was still work to be done.
“This was clearly not the way we wanted to start. It was a disappointing game, there was a lot of cleaning up to do and that’s what we’re going to do,” coach Brian Daboll said in his opening statement to the media, after which he repeatedly said he “needed to do better.”
“Yeah, obviously not good enough,” Jones told reporters. “Didn’t get in the end zone, score six points, didn’t create a lot of rhythm and flow for ourselves. I’ve got to get better, play better, give ourselves more opportunities to make plays and execute more consistently.”
The Giants’ first drive of the season may have been the synthesized essence of what was to come: a two-yard run, a complete pass behind the line that led to a six-yard loss, a delay of game penalty, an incomplete pass, a punt. A nightmare start for Big Blue.
On their third drive, Jones targeted rookie wide receiver Malik Nabers three times. His first pass was nearly intercepted, while the second was dropped.
The third time was the charm as he finally connected with the LSU star for a gain of 25 yards, the first of many long passes in his career.
“I thought he played well,” Jones told DailyMail.com of his new top target Nabers. “Some big plays, some nice catches, I’ve got to find a way to get him the ball more often.” Nabers would finish with five catches for 66 yards on the day.
After a three-and-out drive, the fans cheered as a tip drill on the ensuing punt landed on the 1-yard line. The entire lower bowl rose to its feet and wanted to rally their team to stop Minnesota.
Jones praised the play of his new top target, Malik Nabers, who led the Giants in catches
But Jones’ passes were often off target, prompting an avalanche of boos from the crowd
The Vikings ignored the noise and engineered an 11-play, 99-yard drive for a touchdown. Even with backup quarterback Sam Darnold (rookie JJ McCarthy was projected as the starter but was injured in preseason), Minnesota carved up the Giants’ secondary like a Sunday roast.
Long passes to Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison racked up yards before Darnold — the former third overall pick — found Addison for a three-yard touchdown pass on fourth down.
Stunned silence fell throughout MetLife. That silence was broken by boos when Jones’ first pass of the ensuing drive was low, completely missing his receiver, just one of many low, wide or off-target passes from No. 8 on the day.
On the Giants’ final drive before halftime, Jones was sacked and had two incompletions. Heated by the hostility of the fans, he removed his helmet and sat alone on the bench, his eyes fixed on the grass.
Still, Giants fans were hoping for a stronger second half. Minnesota scored on its opening drive, but the decibel meter reached 104.5 when New York made a crucial third-down stop that forced the Vikings to punt.
Jordan Addison caught a touchdown pass after an 11-play, 99-yard drive for Minnesota
Jalen Nailor (83) celebrates a touchdown catch to open the second half against the Giants
Jones repaid this momentum by immediately throwing a pick-six.
A somber Jones admitted he was ‘just trying to get the ball to Wan’dale’ [Robinson] “If I see it on the screen early, I’ll look at it and see if I can get it out quicker.”
Fans headed for the exits with just over four minutes left in the third quarter. They left again early in the fourth quarter when, with the Giants 11 yards from the end zone, Jones forced a pass into double coverage and was intercepted again.
Despite this, Daboll told the media that he never considered taking Jones out of the game early.
As the clock began to tick, Minnesota fans inside the stadium began to sing their “skol” chant, while the Vikings in the quickly emptying MetLife Stadium applauded.
Jones finished his day with 21 completed passes for a meager 181 yards, no touchdowns and two interceptions — an average of just 4.8 yards per completion.
After his performance, Jones admitted his game was ‘not good enough’. Perhaps surprisingly, he revealed that Sunday’s match had not dented his confidence.
Andrew Van Ginkel (43) caught a pick-six on a crucial play that seemed to decide the game
Jones would throw another interception to Harrison Smith in the endzone from 11 yards out
Giants coach Brian Daboll speaks to the media after a 28-6 loss to the Minnesota Vikings
“I think I need to get into a rhythm, get going, finish some balls, get things moving,” Jones said in response to a question from DailyMail.com
“I think we all need to do that. That will help us build confidence and move forward.”
It may only be Week 1, but for a team that was already dealing with a lot of negativity before the season even started, it’s safe to say this game did little to alleviate those concerns.
The Giants could end up as the favorite to win the first overall pick this season, and Sunday’s performance showed why that could be a better bet than the team had hoped.