No one was surprised in 2022 when the New York Giants declined quarterback Daniel Jones’ fifth-year option for 2023. After four NFL seasons, Jones had already played for two head coaches and would be playing for his third head coach in 2022.
The Giants finally got it right when they hired Brian Daboll as head coach. It gave Jones stability, and Daboll schemed an offense around what his quarterback did best. Jones rewarded the Giants with his best NFL season, leading New York back to the playoffs and a trip to the NFC divisional round.
In the offseason, there was no bitterness from Jones’ camp. It was all business as the Giants handed Jones a new contract worth up to $160 million over four years.
It was undoubtedly a shocking number, but that’s the cost of doing business with NFL quarterbacks.
Shortly after the 2023 NFL draft, the deadline passed for NFL teams to pick up the fifth-year options on 2020 first-round picks. Surprisingly, several NFL teams declined fifth-year options on their 2020 first-rounders, with the most prominent name being the No. 2 overall pick that year — Chase Young of the Washington Commanders.
Young was the NFL defensive rookie of the year in 2020 but has just 1.5 sacks since. Much of that is due to a significant knee injury suffered in Nov. 2021. However, in the nine games before his injury that season, Young had only 1.5 sacks.
Charles Robinson of Yahoo Sports recently named four players from Young’s draft class who could follow a similar path as Jones. Young was tops on his list:
This one isn’t rocket science, considering Young was the No. 2 pick in the 2020 NFL Draft and considered a nearly can’t-miss player coming out of Ohio State. He didn’t exactly “miss” with Washington, as much as simply having a promising start completely derailed by injuries. The questions for the Commanders are fairly simple. Can Young recapture the explosive ability that made him the NFL’s Defensive Rookie of the Year in the 2020 season? And if he can, how much more of the salary cap can the Commanders pour into their defensive line, which is already carrying substantial extensions for Daron Payne and Jonathan Allen (not to mention facing defensive end Montez Sweat’s contract expiring after 2023)? In a way, it might be a race of sorts for Young and Sweat. The Commanders can’t apply a franchise tag to both, so it’s very likely if they both have banner seasons in 2023, one will be heading to free agency and the other will be tagged in an effort to carve out an extension. Simply due to salary cap realities, it seems unlikely Washington would want to devote four mega contracts to four defensive linemen. Barring another hollow season, Young will have suitors. When his option was declined, one AFC general manager was already talking about how attractive it would be to add him in a reboot of their defensive line. He isn’t alone, and plenty of eyeballs will be on Young this season.
Young’s situation is unique. We wonder, if a new owner was already in place, would they have picked up that fifth-year option? Young still has superstar potential — on and off the field.
Robinson makes some excellent points. Washington was never going to pay all four first-round picks. The Commanders were likely planning to pay three, but most figured those three would be Allen, Sweat and Young. Payne’s career year last season changed everything for the better.
Sweat and Young — while close friends — will be competing to remain in Washington past next season. Regardless of which player remains with the Commanders beyond 2023, both will have multiple suitors.
