For the first time since Week 5, Daniel Jones got to be part of a winning locker room this past Sunday when the Minnesota Vikings defeated the Arizona Cardinals. Jones watched his new Vikings teammates get the victory from the sideline as he continued to adjust to life after parting with the New York Giants last month.
Ever since he signed with Minnesota's practice squad last week, many have been wondering what the team is planning to do with the veteran quarterback this season. We know Jones wasn't added to take the starting job from Sam Darnold, but NFL Media's Tom Pelissero recently shared some insight about what the next few weeks could look like for the Vikings' newest quarterback.
"It might be another week, or two, or three before [Minnesota adds Jones to the active roster]. This is a long-term play by the Vikings. It gives them optionality in the event that Sam Darnold does not return next season.
Short-term the focus for Jones is just getting into the game plans, learning the language, learning the protections. He's spending extra time every day with Kevin O'Connell, [assistant offensive coordinator] Grant Udinski, as well as [quarterbacks coach] Josh McCown. [He's] just learning how they want him to play the position.
So, no rush having Daniel Jones up as the No. 2 [quarterback]. But if something were to happen to Darnold in the coming weeks, Jones very well could be starting [and] he's preparing every day as if that's a possibility."
Minnesota Vikings in no hurry to make former New York Giants QB Daniel Jones their top backup
Based on what Pelissero shared, Jones probably won't even be part of Minnesota's active roster for the next few weeks unless another quarterback on the team's roster suffers an injury.
By choosing to sign with the Vikings, it was clear that Jones didn't base his decision on the opportunity to play this season. At this point, he just wants to get his NFL career back on track after a rough tenure with the Giants, and he believes the coaching staff in Minnesota can help him accomplish that.
The best-case scenario would really be for the Vikings to never have Jones on the field for a snap this season, and then the former New York quarterback can decide in 2025 if he wants to return to Minnesota for another year.
Unfortunately, the Vikings and best-case scenarios haven't exactly been the best of friends throughout the existence of the franchise, so it also wouldn't be surprising if the team actually does end up needing Jones to play at some point during the final few weeks of the season.
But for now, he's taking advantage of a life that is a lot less stressful than when he resided in the city that never sleeps.
