Daniel Jones' Updated Fantasy Outlook After Giants' Week 2 Loss to WFT

Timothy Rapp @@TRappaRTFeatured Columnist IVSeptember 17, 2021

LANDOVER, MARYLAND - SEPTEMBER 16: Daniel Jones #8 of the New York Giants rushes with the ball during the first quarter against the Washington Football Team at FedExField on September 16, 2021 in Landover, Maryland. (Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images)

Patrick Smith/Getty Images

Is Daniel Jones the best running back on the New York Giants?

OK, OK, that's obviously a joke, but Jones made waves in Thursday night's 30-29 loss to the Washington Football Team by rushing nine times for 95 yards and a score.

He also threw for 249 yards and a touchdown.

His rushing yards topped Saquon Barkley's effort (13 rushes for 57 yards). Even with Barkley working his way back from a torn ACL, who would have seen that coming?

Just look at this man go:

NFL @NFL
Got called back, but… <a href="https://twitter.com/Daniel_Jones10?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Daniel_Jones10</a> 📺: <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/NYGvsWAS?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#NYGvsWAS</a> on <a href="https://twitter.com/nflnetwork?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@NFLNetwork</a> 📱: <a href="https://t.co/VR50LZIQwH">https://t.co/VR50LZIQwH</a> <a href="https://t.co/t5ZwCUGqJm">pic.twitter.com/t5ZwCUGqJm</a>

NFL @NFL
DJ TURN ME UP. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/TogetherBlue?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#TogetherBlue</a> 📺: <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/NYGvsWAS?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#NYGvsWAS</a> on <a href="https://twitter.com/nflnetwork?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@NFLNetwork</a> 📱: <a href="https://t.co/VR50LZIQwH">https://t.co/VR50LZIQwH</a> <a href="https://t.co/FQR4ks5RUQ">pic.twitter.com/FQR4ks5RUQ</a>

Mina Kimes @minakimes
remember when Daniel Jones recorded the fastest speed in the NFL last year and then we, as a society, collectively erased it from our memory

shannon sharpe @ShannonSharpe
Daniel Jones can scoot scoot.

Ryan Clark @Realrclark25
I’m never truly ready for Daniel Jones to take off running. Bruh is Fa real fast… It’s dang near comical when he’s out there dusting folks. I almost wished he’d have more success so we could just talk about him getting loose sometimes.

That meant for the second straight week in standard-scoring leagues, Jones exceeded 20 fantasy points. And it might have people wondering if Jones might just sneak into the back end of the QB1 conversation this year in fantasy football.

Let's not get ahead of ourselves.

We're still talking about the player who, after a promising rookie season, threw for 2,943 yards, 11 touchdowns and 10 interceptions last year in 14 games, completing 62.5 percent of his passes while being sacked 45 times. It was a bad season.

Doug Farrar ✍ @NFL_DougFarrar
Daniel Jones going through his progressions: <a href="https://t.co/bknM6LHkrT">pic.twitter.com/bknM6LHkrT</a>

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Sure, the Giants were bad, but great quarterbacks—even good ones—tend to elevate teams. The Giants, meanwhile, were 5-9 in his starts. They're 0-2 this year, too.

So yeah, Jones might be fast, but there are still major questions about whether he can actually play quarterback at a high level. Those are the same questions you should be concerned with from a fantasy football perspective.

His solid fantasy start to the season means he should be rostered as a low-end QB2 in all formats. Just keep in mind he finished 24th in fantasy points amongst quarterbacks last year, one spot below Drew Lock and just one spot above Joe Burrow, who only played in 10 games.

Maybe Jones will turn a corner this year. He already looks better than he did a year ago. Maybe his running ability will bolster his fantasy profile as well.

He's gotten off to a nice fantasy start. But keep those expectations tempered for now. He's a QB2 until he proves he can produce consistently.