Daniel Jones' catch a true rarity for Giants
Daniel Jones of the Giants scrambles against the Panthers at MetLife Stadium on Sunday. Credit: Mike Stobe
Besides being athletically impressive and aesthetically pleasing, Daniel Jones’ catch against the Panthers also was a rarity for the Giants.
When he pulled in the pass from Dante Pettis, Jones became the first Giants quarterback to record a catch as the intended receiver in a game since Sept. 25, 1988, when Jeff Hostetler caught a pass from Phil Simms. Hostetler was the seldom-used backup quarterback at the time and still more than two years away from becoming the guy who would lead the team to a Super Bowl title, but he occasionally was used as a receiver early in his career. Hey, they had to find something for him to do.
Hostetler managed a 10-yard gain on the fourth-quarter catch, but the play ended with him fumbling the ball and giving it back to the Rams, who eventually scored the touchdown that sealed their 45-31 win.
It was Hostetler’s only career reception.
There was, however, another quarterback between Hostetler and Jones who technically caught a pass in a game. On Sept. 10, 2001, against the Broncos, Kerry Collins threw a pass that was batted back to him by safety Eric Brown. He caught it in the air but was tackled for a 2-yard loss.
So not only was Jones’ catch rare in terms of a quarterback catching the ball, it was even rarer for it being a successful play worth celebrating.
Tom Rock began covering sports for Newsday in 1996 and became its NFL columnist in 2022. He previously was Newsday's Giants beat writer beginning in 2008.
