The legend of Daniel Jones has already begun in New York, and the rookie has already done something Eli Manning did not.
Jones led the Giants to a 32-31 win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sunday. They came back from down 28-10 at halftime to outscore Tampa Bay 15-0 in the third quarter and eventually prevail.
According to ESPN Stats & Info, Eli had never won a game when he trailed by 18 or more in his NFL career. Jones is obviously 1-0 in that situation.
Daniel Jones is 1-0 when trailing by 18+. Eli Manning is 0-44 in those games in his career. pic.twitter.com/FobTzn0pLr
— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) September 22, 2019
The Duke rookie threw for two touchdowns and ran for two. Scoring multiple TDs in both ways was also a rare occurrence for a QB in their first start:
According to Elias: Daniel Jones is the second player since the 1970 merger to record 2 Rush TD and 2 Pass TD in their first NFL start. The other was Eric Hipple in 1981.
— Jordan Raanan (@JordanRaanan) September 23, 2019
The media can build a player up and tear them down very quickly. We are currently in Phase 1 of propping up Daniel Jones.
Truthfully, based on how well he did in the preseason and what he showed in his first start, the Giants should be fired up. As for Eli, he did lead the NFL in game-winning drives in 2011 with six, so it’s not like he’s a slouch in that department. A comeback of this nature is just a very rare achievement, and a big deal for Jones.
