Baker Mayfield offered his usual no-holds barred opinion when discussing the Giants drafting Daniel Jones, telling GQ he “can’t believe” New York selected the Duke quarterback sixth overall in April.
Mayfield was the No. 1 overall pick in the 2018 draft and went 6-7 as a starter as a rookie with the Cleveland Browns. Jones was drafted by the Giants after Mayfield’s former Oklahoma teammate, quarterback Kyler Murray, went first to the Arizona Cardinals.
“I cannot believe the Giants took Daniel Jones,” Mayfield said when a Sportscenter segment about the Giants aired during one of his interviews with the magazine. “Blows my mind. … Some people overthink it. That’s where people go wrong. They forget you’ve gotta win.”
The Giants’ decision to draft Jones early in the first round was viewed a relative surprise, given Jones’ 17-19 record as a three-year starter for the Blue Devils. However, 38-year-old Eli Manning is in the twilight of his career, and Jones has drawn universal acclaim from teammates in his first training camp. During two preseason games, Jones completed 16 of his 19 passes and led a pair of touchdown drives.
Mayfield has not held back when asked for his opinion on team and league headlines. For example, he ripped former teammate Duke Johnson for requesting a trade — typically it’s taboo for one player to comment on another player’s contract situation or trade request — and chided Giants fans when the Browns traded Odell Beckham Jr. to Cleveland.
Jones is not expected to start ahead of Manning this season but could force his way onto the field if Manning falters.
For their part, Jones and his coach, Pat Shurmur, seemed unfazed on Tuesday by Mayfield’s comments.
“[Baker] is in a long line of people that criticized that move,” Shurmur told reporters. “That’s not original commentary, is it? … I know [Jones] is a winner. Don’t confuse calm and composed for a guy who is competitive and a winner.”
Jones added his comments about Mayfield.
“I think he’s a great player. He can throw it, and I enjoy watching him play,” the rookie said, per the New York Post.
