Insider shares if Giants could trade Daniel Jones this offseason

NFL insider Connor Hughes of SNY explained in a mailbag published on Friday why it's unlikely New York Giants general manager Joe Schoen will attempt to trade quarterback Daniel Jones this offseason regardless of what the club does in the first round of the 2023 NFL Draft. 

"Even if the Giants wanted to get rid of Jones, they can’t," Hughes wrote. "I touched base with multiple high-ranking front office executives regarding Jones in recent months. More out of curiosity than anything else. If Schoen decided he wanted to trade Jones, what could he get? The resounding sentiment was nothing. One source told me Jones is 'untradeable' right now."

That source mentioned the four-year contract reportedly worth up to $160M that Jones signed last March coupled with his injury history as major reasons New York is essentially stuck with the 26-year-old through the 2024 season. 

Specifically, Jones has missed a total of nine games since 2021 because of worrisome neck issues, and he'll be coming off a torn ACL in his right knee that he suffered back on Nov. 5. 

The Giants can escape Jones' contract next offseason. 

As shared by Heavy's Michael Obermuller, Hughes offered his update the same day that former NFL general manager Mike Tannenbaum suggested during Friday's edition of the ESPN "Get Up" program that the Giants should explore acquiring quarterback Deshaun Watson and a second-round draft pick from the Cleveland Browns in return for Jones. Such a deal seems unlikely for multiple reasons. 

While it's still early days into Jones' recovery from his latest setback, he's on track to participate in training camp sessions and play in Week 1 next season. Schoen seems willing to sit a to-be rookie behind Jones for at least one year, but mock drafts such as one shared by ESPN's Field Yates routinely predict that quarterbacks will go off the board via the first three picks of the actual player-selection process. 

Hughes hinted that Schoen would likely have to package the sixth overall draft choice "with one of his second-round picks and something in 2025 to go up and get" whoever is available at picks No. 3-5 among signal-callers Caleb Williams, Jayden Daniels and Drake Maye. 

Simply put, the Giants have too many roster holes to mortgage the future for a quarterback when head coach Brian Daboll may spend the next 11 months fighting to save his job.