Daniel Jones has been released by the New York Giants after he lost the team’s starting quarterback job.
Jones, who found himself third-string quarterback behind Tommy DeVito and Drew Lock on a bye-week for the Giants, signed a four-year $160m contract extension in 2022, which included an injury guarantee of $23m and would have come into effect if he had been hurt over the remainder of the season.
The Giants have won just two of their 10 games this season, including losing their last five.
Giants president John Mara said on Friday: “Daniel came to see me this morning and asked if we would release him. We mutually agreed that would be best for him and for the team.
“Daniel has been a great representative of our organisation. His handling of this situation yesterday exemplified just that.
“We are all disappointed in how things have worked out.
“We hold Daniel in high regard and have a great appreciation for him. We wish him nothing but the best in the future.”
Jones completed just 63% of his passes this season
Jones, who is now free to sign with any team, went 24-44-1 as a starter in New York after being the sixth overall pick in the 2019 draft.
A significant portion of those victories came in 2022, when the Giants went 9-7-1 and beat Minnesota in the first round of the playoffs.
But by 2023, New York was 1-5 in Jones’ six starts during an injury-marred campaign. This season, Jones completed just 63 per cent of his passes with eight touchdowns and seven interceptions, with the Giants last in the NFL in scoring.
“Definitely not happy about it,” said Jones, who read a 90-second statement before taking questions from reporters after he had lost the starting role.
“Not what you want to hear but at the end of the day, this is football. We’re in a business where you’re expected to get results and we weren’t doing it.”