Tom Brady is coming into his own during his first season as an NFL broadcaster, but there are still plenty of critics who find him to be boring on occasion. Well, they might think otherwise after his latest eye-opening comments about former New York Giants quarterback Daniel Jones.
While calling a divisional game between the Giants and Dallas Cowboys on Thanksgiving, Brady shared his thoughts on how Jones left the squad that paid him more than $80 million over the last two seasons.
“I don’t know how the whole situation went down, but to think that you would ask for a release from a team that committed a lot to you is maybe different than I would have handled that,” the five-time Super Bowl MVP said on Fox, via MLFootball. “I always felt I wanted to get the trust and respect of my teammates regardless of the situation, knowing that I was trying to do the best I could for the team because that was the most important thing.”
The Giants benched Jones last week and made it clear that he would not play quarterback for the franchise again this season. He issued a statement to the media that read like a goodbye and was soon granted his release. The No. 6 overall pick in the 2019 NFL Draft is now a member of the Minnesota Vikings. Brady obviously believes that Jones had a duty to continue representing the organization for the benefit of the other 52 men on the roster.
Tom Brady faced his own obstacles during career
“There’s just some different things that happen in the NFL and everyone makes individual choices, and I think we’re all at points in our career where we face different challenges,” Brady continued. “I faced them in college (Michigan) and some things didn’t go the way I wanted, but the people who mattered most to me were the guys in the locker room. I showed up every day. I don’t care if they asked me to be scout team safety or scout team quarterback, I was going to do whatever I could to help the team win.”
While Brady’s tone did not veer into contempt, his remarks are scathing nonetheless. He is basically asserting that Jones put himself above the Giants, even though he was still contractually obligated to serve the franchise. But many fans will contend that the embattled signal-caller is simply choosing to swim ashore rather than drown on a team that has already taken hold of his life raft.
The 6-foot-5 mobile quarterback found himself in a unique predicament that did not offer a black and white solution. A veteran who has enjoyed a successful run in the league is expected to do what he can to assist the next guy in line when management deems his time atop the depth chart to be over. Jones is only 27 years of age, however. The NFL’s personal Grim Reaper is not at his doorstep quite yet.
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Did Daniel Jones owe the Giants?
Playing the position of safety for the scout team at practice, while admirable, is not an optimal route one takes when they are on the road to redemption. Jones’ best chance at bouncing back relatively quick is to start fresh and soak up knowledge from a good football team or proven culture, a la Baker Mayfield and Sam Darnold. The Giants do not fit that mold, and have not for some time.
Of course, Jones’ sloppy play, which includes more than 70 career turnovers, is a big reason why New York is trending in a downward direction. He had plenty of opportunities to show marked growth but instead regressed. There is no indication that ownership considers him to be ungrateful, though. Watching the former Duke talent languish on the sidelines will not ease the regret the G-Men feel for their massive financial miscalculation.
But Tom Brady is from a different generation. He is living proof of the transformative effect adversity can have on a player. There is a difference, though, between adversity and torture. Jones is not helping the Giants reach the next step, and vice versa. Maybe this breakup can force both sides to look in the mirror and clean themselves up.