Daniel Jones plays and talks with an edge in statement road victory over Seahawks

SEATTLE — Daniel Jones lowered his enarthrosis connected a mates of his runs Sunday, initiating interaction with defenders alternatively than absorbing it. Then helium was arsenic arsenic spicy astatine the postgame podium.

This was D.J. successful onslaught mode. This was a franchise quarterback, who has been ridiculed by chap NFL players and media alike, pushing backmost aft a beardown show and a connection 29-20 roadworthy win.

“A batch was made of not being capable to tally the shot arsenic good past week,” Jones said, shoving the Giants’ 5.1 yards per transportation successful doubters’ faces aft a week’s worthy of vigor for their 1.1 yards per transportation against Dallas. “I deliberation we recognize who we are and what we tin be. You effort not to get excessively distracted by immoderate of the worldly that comes up aft 1 game. We person a batch of assurance successful our tally game.”

Jones was past asked however helium avoids getting distracted by the changeless media attraction successful New York. The usually reserved backmost leaned close into it.

“I deliberation conscionable knowing what’s real, knowing what’s really going on, what happened,” Jones said. “You can’t travel the storyline of the week. I deliberation that’s conscionable astir focusing connected what we do, listening to the opinions that matter. That’s the radical successful the gathering — coaches, teammates — and absorption connected that. Not distracting yourself oregon allowing yourself to look extracurricular of it.

“I thought we did a bully occupation of that this week, and that’s important for america arsenic a team,” the sixth-year seasoned added. “But [there will] ever beryllium a communicative of the week oregon thought that’s retired there, and it’s our occupation to cognize what’s real, hole the problems that are existent and disregard the things that aren’t.”

This us-against-the-world cognition permeated done the squad Sunday. The different contented nether the Giants’ tegument was the changeless absorption connected their inability to marque explosive passing plays down the tract connected Jones heavy balls.

While praising wide receiver Darius Slayton, caput manager Brian Daboll stopped to inquire a newsman however galore yards Slayton’s longest drawback of the time was.

Daboll knew the answer: 41. It was the Giants’ archetypal 40-plus gait passing play of the season. He was conscionable making a point, shoving it backmost successful the media’s face.

Slayton mocked the media’s harping connected Jones missing immoderate heavy throws successful the Cowboys game, arsenic well.

“He deed the shots contiguous that, you know, everyone’s been saying we request to hit,” Slayton said, smiling and rolling his eyes.

Jones threw a jab astir the Slayton completion, arsenic well.

“I think, yeah, you know, determination is simply a storyline I conjecture there,” helium said.

This borderline from the Giants, and Jones successful particular, is invited and arguably indispensable fixed that nary 1 genuinely believes successful their quality to contend this twelvemonth but for them.

Jones posted his champion backmost standing this play (109.6) connected Sunday and the ninth-best of his career.

He completed 23 of 34 passes for 234 yards, 2 touchdowns and nary interceptions. It was Jones’ 3rd crippled successful 4 weeks with 2 TD passes, nary interceptions and a standing of astatine slightest 100.0.

He besides racked up a season-high 38 rushing yards connected 11 carries, making him the archetypal backmost successful Giants past to unreserved for astatine slightest 2,000 yards (he present has 2,022).

It’s not conscionable what helium did Sunday, though. It’s however helium did it.

Jones drove his assemblage into Seahawks defenders. When Seattle’s players pummeled him with large hits, helium got close up and continued dissecting them efficiently.

He was undeterred.

This is the aforesaid backmost who was being trashed by different NFL players and nationalist media aft his preseason pick-six against the Houston Texans and his Week 1 pick-six against the Minnesota Vikings.

It has go trendy successful the NFL to mock Jones, from Baker Mayfield years agone to the San Francisco 49ers players past play to country Patrick Peterson this offseason and connected down the line.

The Giants’ determination to wage him large bucks portion letting players similar Saquon Barkley and Xavier McKinney permission is not viewed by critics — including galore NFL players — arsenic the due allocation of resources.

Even teammate Kayvon Thibodeaux said successful January that helium thought Barkley should person been paid earlier Jones. And the Giants’ beforehand bureau and coaching unit scouted quarterbacks to draught 1 this past April arsenic Jones’ replacement, but conscionable couldn’t determination up to get Jayden Daniels oregon Drake Maye.

That puts them connected an evident way to intimately scout the 2025 NFL Draft class’ quarterbacks, arsenic well.

So it’s Jones against the proverbial world. That makes him a bully person for a Giants squad successful the aforesaid predicament, frankly, retired to beryllium themselves close and everyone other wrong.

And if helium plays this mode consistently, it becomes harder to ideate the Giants would beryllium successful the first-round backmost marketplace travel draught clip — though that determination won’t beryllium made until Jones has this year’s runway to beryllium if helium tin beryllium this consistently effectual oregon not.

That’s what makes Jones’ shoulder-lowering connected his runs truthful positively contagious, though. It indicates he’s moving towards the storm, determined to propulsion his mode consecutive done it.

Slayton joked that arsenic Jones’ teammate, he’d alternatively not spot the backmost instrumentality truthful galore hits.

“That’s astir the lone happening that’s cringy astir his play sometimes,” Slayton said with a laugh. “I’m similar ‘Look, hey, man. I cognize you’re Mr. Tough Guy and each that, but [let’s] get the yards and get down.”

That’s not who Jones is, though. And possibly the Giants are amended disconnected due to the fact that of it. It surely seemed that mode Sunday.

“Any clip a backmost does that — you got to beryllium astute astir it — but he’s a existent competitor,” Daboll said. “There was a play mates weeks back, him pushing connected the extremity enactment successful Cleveland. He’s a competitory young antheral who — again, Daniel Jones has done everything that I and we person asked him to do.

“He’s present early,” the manager said. “He stays late. He’s got bully enactment traits. It’s ne'er been casual for him, but everything we’ve asked him to bash helium does it the precise champion helium tin bash it. He’s played immoderate bully shot here. We’re going to request him to proceed to bash that.”

Jones past walked disconnected the podium to greet his parents, who had attended Sunday’s crippled successful idiosyncratic successful Seattle, feeling “comfortable” and “confident” and pleased with shutting up the skeptics for 1 week.

“Just practicing staying focused connected what is important,” Jones said.