Daniel Jones won't face the pressure of being a starting quarterback right off the bat, but the New York Giants hope the first-round pick can grow into a franchise signal-caller.
Big Blue's new veteran receiver Golden Tate offered a glowing review of the rookie early in offseason workouts when joining SiriusXM NFL Radio on Thursday.
"He's doing a good job," Tate said. "If you just look at talent-wise, the guy has a super, super strong arm. He can move around a little bit. But with quarterbacks, you just never know, you never know because it's such a mental game."
The biggest knock on Jones coming out of Duke was that he didn't have the biggest arm, so Tate's comments should perk eyebrows. Jones' accuracy on intermediate routes fit with offensive coordinator Pat Shurmur's system, which could benefit the young quarterback whenever he eventually hits the field.
As for the mental side -- something GM Dave Gettleman harped was a must-have for any New York QB -- Tate believes Jones learning behind Eli Manning will pay off in the long run.
"We're hoping that he can respond to pressure," Tate said of Jones. "If Eli breaks a shoelace or something (and misses a play), that he won't even miss a beat. The good news with Dan's situation is he is sitting right behind a Hall of Fame-type quarterback, so he is going to have an opportunity to learn some incredible tools that can help him in the future. I hope it's kind of like that Brett Favre to Aaron Rodgers kind of situation eventually."
Much has been made about the eventual baton handoff from Manning to Jones. It won't take three years like it did in Rodgers' case. Odds are it doesn't even take a full season for the rookie to see the field.
