National Football League

New York Giants draw the wrong kind of attention after practice fight

Updated Aug. 3, 2021 6:43 p.m. ET

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The pads are on in training camp, and the hits are coming.

But for the New York Giants, that might not be the best news, after their first day of padded practice ended with their starting quarterback, Daniel Jones, in the middle of a brawl.

Seeing your starting quarterback at the bottom of a pile is never ideal, especially when it comes during a brawl with his own teammates.

Giants head coach Joe Judge was quick to make his team pay for their actions, with stern disciplinary punishment in the form of sprints and push-ups.

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But even with the rough first day of padded practice, Jones welcomed the competitive nature of the team while admitting that there needs to be more control.

"Everyone's excited, first day of pads," he said. "We have to do a better job of controlling that and making sure we're controlled in our enthusiasm."

The coming season is a pivotal one for the young quarterback. Jones is just 8-18 as a starter through two seasons with the Giants after being selected with the sixth overall pick in the 2019 NFL Draft. After a promising rookie season in which he threw 24 touchdown passes in 12 starts, he regressed in his second campaign, with only 11 touchdown passes in 14 starts.

Jones has also struggled with turnovers.

As for Judge, he is entering his second season as the head coach of the Giants and is looking to lead the franchise back to the playoffs for the first time since 2017.

Judge is the team's third head coach in the past six seasons, not counting Steve Spagnuolo, who served as the interim head coach after Bob McAdoo was fired during the 2017 season.

The instability is a stark contrast to the era of Tom Coughlin, who led the Giants from 2004 to 2015 and guided the team to five playoff appearances, with Super Bowl victories in 2007 and 2011.

With all of that scrutiny on Jones, Judge and the franchise in general, the last thing the organization wants to see is its quarterback risking injury in a brawl at practice. The focus should be on getting back to being a competitive team, not meaningless nonsense such as intra-squad fights.

Judge and Jones both seem to understand that.

"Yeah, there are consequences for that kind of stuff," Jones said. "That is the way it is in a game. You have to keep your cool. There are consequences, and it hurts your team. That was the message. I think everyone understands."

Now, the team will likely be watched more closely than ever.

For more up-to-date news on all things Giants, click here to register for alerts on the FOX Sports app!

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