Giants GM invokes Patrick Mahomes in throwing support behind his QB

Heading into the 2024 season, the New York Giants are looking to forget about last year's disaster, when they went 6-11 and their $140M quarterback, Daniel Jones, played in only six games, winning just one.

In the premier episode of HBO's "Hard Knocks" on Tuesday (via Yahoo), Giants GM Joe Schoen backed Jones, noting that Kansas City Chiefs superstar Patrick Mahomes couldn’t have won behind the Giants' offensive line.

“[In] Miami, we got three [expletive] practice squad guys playing for us. You could have Patrick Mahomes and he can’t [expletive] win behind that,” Schoen said during the show, which chronicles the Giants offseason.

Last season, the Giants allowed an NFL-high 85 sacks . The next-closest team was the Washington Commanders and Carolina Panthers, who allowed 65 apiece.

Thirty of those 85 sacks came with Jones at QB -- that's one more than Miami's Tua Tagovailoa, who played in all 17 games. The fifth-year QB started six games for the Giants, two of which he would suffer an injury, forcing him out of the game. Jones would be sacked an average of five times per game last season.

Jones dealt with a pinched nerve in his neck during the 2021 season, causing him to miss the final six games. Last season, Jones dealt with another pinched nerve in his neck, this time only missing three games before returning to the field. His Week 9 return wouldn't last long as Jones suffered a torn ACL on the first play of the second quarter.

Jones, who's also a rushing threat, got hit at a higher rate than almost every QB last season. Many of his rushing attempts ended with him attempting to gain an extra yard and taking a big hit to the head or neck.

Untreated neck injuries are the type of injuries that tend to end careers. Jones missed the final eight games of the season, allowing his knee and neck to heal.

The Giants attempted to bolster their O-line with several offseason signings, including free agents Jon Runyan and Jermain Eluemonor. If New York allows 85 sacks again this season, a 6-11 season or worse is almost assured.

With needed offensive line help, Jones and the Giants are looking to avoid a repeat of their 2023 season and attempt to make it back to the playoffs, as they did in 2022.