One thing was apparent when the New York Giants’ 2022 season ended in January. They were going to find a way to retain impending free agent quarterback Daniel Jones by any means necessary.
It was no secret. It was all no secret that Jones wanted to return, but both sides had to be smart about things. Jones switched agents and the negotiations went back and forth as they do in any contract talks.
The only issue was, time was running out.
Veteran NFL reporter Albert Breer revealed in an article on Monday that the two sides actually did not have an agreement in writing as the March 7 deadline approached and resorted to a “pinky swear” to get the deal done.
A hug was also included.
“That’s the only way this deal worked, is both sides were willing to roll up their sleeves and forget about traditional negotiating tactics, not worry about who’s calling who or whose turn it is to give a proposal, and just work our asses off,” said Jones’ agent, Brian Murphy, the president of Athletes First.
“Because this was the best result for everybody. It was just really good. I was proud of the transparency throughout the process, we were very up front and open with [Giants GM] Joe [Schoen] and his whole team, and they were with us… No one hid the fact that we wanted to get this done. It’s the right result, 100 percent.”
The Giants and Jones agreed on a four-year deal worth $160 million that could end up being worth $195 million in incentives. The deal allowed the Giants to place the franchise tag on star running back Saquon Barkley and head into free agency with approximately $23 million in available cap space.
