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New York Giants News: James Jones Signed To Contract

By Kenneth Teape

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On the first day of training camp, the New York Giants will already be introducing a new face. They wasted no time in adding more competition and shoring up a potential problem, signing veteran wide receiver James Jones.

Jones, who played last season with the Oakland Raiders and Green Bay Packers previously, will sign a one-year deal with the Giants for the minimum. Jones is a player that had been linked to the Giants previously in the offseason, but with training camp now open you will start seeing more veterans receiving one-year minimum deals to try and make a roster. For Jones, he has landed in a great spot and gives the Giants some much needed insurance.

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With Victor Cruz rehabbing from patellar tendon surgery, no one really knows what to expect from him when he is back on the field. All reports have been positive thus far, as there has not been any setbacks reported. But, with such a severe injury, Cruz could be sapped of the speed that made him the player he is. Also, he could just not be ready for the beginning of the season as rehab is long and tenuous for any injury, but especially one as serious as what Cruz was going through.

With Jones now in the fold, the Giants can afford to bring Cruz along even slower now. As the roster stood prior to the Jones signing, the Giants were woefully thin on slot options. Preston Parker filled in admirably last season, but leaves something to be desired at times. The Giants have said they want to get newly signed Dwayne Harris more into the offense than he was with the Dallas Cowboys, but putting slot duties on him without much experience could have been a tough sell.

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The Giants will not have to worry about that now, as Jones can fill in at the slot until Cruz returns. He has plenty of experience doing it with the Packers and Raiders, and will also help Eli Manning in the red zone. He can be a matchup problem in the slot with his size when they are closing in on the end zone. It is yet another weapon for Manning to use, as Odell Beckham Jr. and Larry Donnell are also strong in the red zone.

Also, Jones will be reuniting with Ben McAdoo, who he played under with the Packers from 2007-2013. He had some high scoring seasons with the Packers, scoring seven and 14 touchdowns respectively his last two seasons there, so McAdoo knows what his strengths and weakness are. In addition to helping out in the slot, he can also push Rueben Randle a little bit if he starts camp off slowly. The best way to light a fire under a young player is to show that he isn’t irreplaceable, and the Giants can do that now with Jones under contract.

Jones put up paltry numbers last season with the Raiders, catching 73 passes for 666 yards and six touchdowns. That equals out to an ugly 9.1 yards per reception, but part of that could be attributed to the Raiders offense, or lack thereof as they acclimated rookie Derek Carr to the life of an NFL quarterback. Previously in his career he averaged a much stronger 13.9 yards per reception.

While Jones will more than likely just be fighting for the No.4 or No.5 spot on the Giants, his veteran presence and experience should be enough to keep him around. That could spell trouble for bubble players such as Parker, Julian Talley, Corey Washington and Juron Criner, who were all thought to be fighting for that spot. Jones would seem to have the upper hand heading into practice, and should have a spot unless he shows that last season with the Raiders was no fluke, and he really has slowed and is no longer a useable NFL player.

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