The New York Giants announced on Tuesday that rookie quarterback Daniel Jones would be starting as the G-Men come to town to take on the Bucs inside Raymond James Stadium on Sunday. The Giants selected Jones with the No. 6 overall pick in the 2019 NFL Draft out of Duke. The pick wasn't without its share of controversy at the time and now, switching from a veteran like Eli Manning to the rookie is spurring its own subsequent controversy. Many are hypothesizing that this signifies the end of the long-time NFL signal caller's time in New York. The Giants started their season 0-2 and it's enough to make New York make a drastic change.
The Bucs have been anticipating Manning, an opponent both Head Coach Bruce Arians and Defensive Coordinator Todd Bowles are very familiar with given his NFL tenure. Now, they'll get a rookie without any regular season tape to show. He may be a similar pocket-passer like Manning, but he's a fresh face with a lot to prove.
Arians still isn't worried about it – especially when it doesn't affect the fact that running back Saquon Barkley will still very much be playing.
"We've got a heck of an opponent this week," Arians said. "Changing quarterbacks doesn't really change their offense [but] it does change some things. For us, we've got to stop number 26 (Saquon Barkley). It all starts and ends with him, then we'll try to contain the quarterback because he's a heck of a lot more mobile than the other guy. Our defense will be ready, and offensively I'd like to see us get off to a little bit faster start."
Through two games, Barkley has 227 rushing yards on 29 attempts for a 7.83 yards-per-rush average. That production has come against formidable opponents, too. The Giants opened their season in Dallas against the Cowboys and played the Buffalo Bills, who are sitting at 2-0, last week. The Bucs have done a good job in their first two contests of taking away opponents' offensive focal points, holding San Francisco's George Kittle to 54 yards receiving and Carolina's Christian McCaffrey to 37 yards rushing. They'll be looking to do the same against Barkley. Jones just adds a wrinkle to their preparation.
View some of the top photos from Buccaneers Week 3 practice at the AdventHealth Training Center.
