New York Giants

Is Daniel Jones to blame for the New York Giants' Thursday loss to WFT?

Updated Sep. 17, 2021 8:37 p.m. ET

Mistakes were the name of the New York Giants' game on Thursday night.

The Giants are 0-2 for the fifth consecutive season after falling to the Taylor Heinicke-led Washington Football Team, 30-29, in a thrilling matchup that went down to the wire on Thursday.

Washington's Dustin Hopkins nailed a 43-yarder in the final seconds to secure the win for WFT, but it came after he missed his first attempt, a 48-yarder.

That miss was negated due to an offsides penalty called on Giants DT Dexter Lawrence (17th overall pick in 2019), which perfectly encapsulated the night for New York.

The Giants made more than a few mistakes that presumably cost them the game, and – for better or worse – all eyes are now on their quarterback Daniel Jones.

Jones finished 22-for-32 for 249 yards and one touchdown. He also led all Giants rushers with 95 yards on nine attempts.

On Friday's "Undisputed," Shannon Sharpe explained why the Giants' loss doesn't completely fall on Jones' shoulders.

"Daniel Jones looked like a very, very competent quarterback [on Thursday] throwing the football when he was protected," Sharpe said. "He got wheels, too. I don’t know why people keep underestimating him."

"In a ballgame like this, there are somewhere between 65 and 70 plays, on average, but … the game comes down to a handful of plays," Sharpe added. "The Giants lost this game on a handful of plays."

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On Friday's "First Things First," Chris Broussard was on the opposite side of the argument, sharing why he believes Jones' best effort simply wasn't enough and saying that the Giants could start looking around for a new franchise QB in the future if the momentum doesn't change in New York.

"They threw that football game away," Broussard said. "Now it's, ‘Do we go with Danny Dimes in the future, or do we start looking at the college ranks for our quarterback?’ They blew it, and I’m not just talking about the field goal at the end. … There was much more than that."

However, he also didn't put Thursday's loss square on Jones' doorstep.

"How about Darius Slayton dropping a sure touchdown pass where there’s not a defender in sight?" Broussard continued. "I get it – Danny Jones threw it a tad bit long, but you’re a professional receiver. You gotta catch that. That would’ve been the ball game right there."

Midway through the fourth quarter, the Giants had a chance to extend their lead and make it a 10-point game, but the Slayton – who already caught a TD on the evening – wasn't able to reel in a deep ball from Jones.

Broussard's cohost Nick Wright echoed his thoughts, pointing out that other key Giants players didn't step up when it was time. Wright believes that though Jones played well, the last-second field goal sealed the Giants' fate – which is that their season is done, despite not even being out of September.

"The good is, if Saquon [Barkley] continues to be limited by the injury, at least they know they have a very solid No. 2 running back in Daniel Jones," Wright said jokingly. "The bad is, their season’s over.

"You can’t start with these two teams in this fashion and lose the way they have and have any hope," Wright added. "There were only four teams on their schedule that when it came out you’re like, ‘Hey, we might have the better quarterback’. Two of them, they’re already played. They’re 0-2.

"Daniel Jones played one of the better games of his career yesterday, which is why it's such a shame for the Giants that they were not able to hold on and win."

Nick Wright on New York's last-second loss to Washington: 'The Giants are done' I FIRST THINGS FIRST

Nick Wright talks the New York Giants after they suffer a heartbreaking loss to the Washington Football Team.

When speaking to reporters after the game, Jones said that his team will focus on communication and that they are going to "work through" the tough loss together in order to bounce back stronger.

"We've gotta get past that and get to work, put our heads back down and focus on what we need to do to improve as a team, and make sure we're in a better position to win games," Jones said.

Regardless of his optimism, it will be a tall order for Jones & Co. to climb out of the 0-2 hole they've become so accustomed to digging.

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