Daniel Jones says joining the Vikings is an 'awesome opportunity'
Then-Giants quarterback Daniel Jones attends a news conference after a practice session in Munich, Germany, on Nov. 8, 2024. Credit: AP
The Vikings will return to U.S. Bank Stadium on Sunday to face the Cardinals after a three-game road stretch. They will have a potential lucky charm with them in quarterback Daniel Jones, who officially was signed to their practice squad on Friday.
“I may or may not have said to him this morning, ‘Our team’s really looking forward to getting back to U.S. Bank Stadium; I’m sure you are, too,’” Vikings coach Kevin Connell said.
O'Connell was referring to a wild-card round playoff game after the 2022 season in which Jones led a 31-24 upset victory for the Giants, passing for 301 yards and two touchdowns.
It helped him secure a four-year, $160 million contract. The Giants released him last week at his request after he went 3-13 over the past two seasons.
On Friday, Jones practiced with the Vikings, then met with reporters.
“Excited to be here, excited to be a Minnesota Viking,” he said. “Awesome opportunity. Just looking to help out and be a part of this team.”
For now, Jones strictly is an insurance policy that adds depth behind former Jets quarterback Sam Darnold, who has led Minnesota to a 9-2 record.
But O’Connell said his aim is to both help Jones with his fundamentals and get him up to speed on the Vikings’ system if he is needed in a game.
The Vikings’ quarterbacks coach is Darnold’s former Jets teammate, Josh McCown.
“We’re going to kind of get him pieced together little by little in our system while also making sure he’s invested in the game plans we do have,” O’Connell said.
“He’s played a lot of football. One of the things we definitely don’t want to do is say, hey, you’re in a new place, let’s just forget everything that’s happened. Because I think there are some real good examples of some high-level football he’s played.”
Jones said he was not thinking beyond this season in deciding to join the Vikings after a “crazy last couple of weeks.” He said he was attracted by the offensive acumen of O’Connell and his staff.
“His system has been successful,” Jones said. “He knows quarterback play, knows how to build the quarterback environment.”
Of course, the same is theoretically true of Giants coach Brian Daboll.
Jones was demoted from first to fourth string by the Giants on Nov. 18, in part to avoid the risk of triggering an insurance clause that could have cost them up to $23 million.
“I think it’s just about time, putting in the time to learn it, to study it,” Jones said. “I’m catching up. These guys are game-planning and focusing on winning. I don’t want to slow anything down with that. It’s on me to catch up.”
Neil Best first worked at Newsday in 1982, returned in 1985 after a detour to Alaska and has been here since, specializing in high schools, college basketball, the NFL and most recently sports media and business.
