Let’s face facts: The New York Giants offense has been more productive since head coach Pat Shurmur made the switch at quarterback from Eli Manning to rookie Daniel Jones.
The measure of a good offense is their ability to drive the football. Manning, in his first two starts, did that successfully on the opening drives in each game but those were both scripted possessions. Once the script ran out, Manning was able to move the ball on drives. But when it came to making key third downs, the Giants stalled.
In the opener against Dallas, Big Blue went 2-for-11 on third down and 1-for-3 on fourth down. In the second game, versus Buffalo, the Giants were 3 of 12 on third down and made one of their two fourth down tries.
That is a combined 21.74% conversion rate on third down, which is atrocious – and, yes, one of the reasons the Giants lost their first two games. Keeping the offense on the field and sustaining drives is naturally crucial, and the Giants simply weren’t getting it done.
Since Jones has taken over, the Giants are 14-for-26 on third down (53%) and have converted both fourth down tries.
You can chalk it all up to the mobility and savviness of Jones says NFL Network analyst Brian Baldinger.
