Minnesota Vikings signing former New York Giants QB Daniel Jones
MINNEAPOLIS — The Minnesota Vikings are signing recently released New York Giants quarterback and former first-round pick Daniel Jones, sources confirm to WCCO.
"Good addition to our quarterback room," head coach Kevin O'Connell said Wednesday. "I've always been a fan. Really like the person, the human being, the makeup and then the player Daniel Jones, I think there's so much out in front of him that are going to be really good things that we get to personally be a part of."
Jones, 27, was benched last week and later released from the Giants (2-9) amid a disappointing performance so far this season. He was officially an unrestricted free agent on Monday.
"It's a classic low risk, I don't know if I want to say high reward, but at least a mild reward move for the Vikings," NFL insider Cody Benjamin told WCCO.
While Jones' poor play was a factor in his benching, so was his $23 million injury guarantee for next year. The Giants are well out of contention this year and an injury to Jones would hamstring them financially next season. Tommy DeVito, the Giants' new starting QB, is a former undrafted free agent. In seven starts, he is 3-4, throwing for 1,290 yards, eight touchdowns and three interceptions.
ESPN's Adam Schefter reports it's a one-year deal for $375,000 and the QB will start on the practice squad. It is unclear at this point where Jones will fall in the depth chart this season. Backup quarterback Nick Mullens has been solid when asked to jump in temporarily in games when Darnold brushed off injuries. O'Connell said they plan to keep Mullens and third-stringer Brett Rypien on the roster.
"Adding Daniel Jones just gives [the Vikings] more insurance behind Sam Darnold," Benjamin said. "You never should feel bad about adding quarterback insurance. Daniel Jones is a guy that, at 27, he's got over 70 career starts, if you throw in a couple of playoff games."
Vikings fans are familiar with Jones, as he picked apart the Vikings' defense in the team's 2022 loss in the playoffs after a 13-4 season.
"He's played a lot of football, so he's got a lot of things that you can really look back on as real positive experience," O'Connell said. "I think all experience matters when you're attempting to do something as difficult as being a starting quarterback at a high level in the NFL."
The move also brings up questions as to how next year's depth chart will look. First-round pick J.J. McCarthy is the only quarterback under contract next year and he is recovering from a meniscus injury. With Darnold likely to sign elsewhere this offseason, the Vikings could be giving Jones an audition for next season as McCarthy's backup or a spot starter. Being on the practice squad also gives Jones the flexibility to sign to another team's active roster at some point.
"From Daniel Jones' perspective, he's still leaving the door open to join another team if, say, a starter did go down and there was an opportunity to go start right away," Benjamin said. "But in Minnesota, he gets to sit under a coach in Kevin O'Connell who's really maximized the quarterbacks at his disposal."
