It maybe didn’t come in as big a spot as the original Philly Special, but the Giants’ own version of the play – Jersey Jersey? – came on Sunday, when Dante Pettis lobbed a pass to Daniel Jones that saw the quarterback make a spectacular one-handed grab for a 16-yard reception.
“It was a pretty unathletic route getting out there, so he put it out there for me and I just tried to pull it in,” Jones said of the play. “Good play, good design, good throw by Dante.”
“Just get this ball to DJ. Don't do anything crazy, don't mess up the throw, just get it to him,” Pettis added of his mindset on the play.
It was a play the Giants had been working on in practice all week, a little trickery as Big Blue prepared for another game without several playmakers on offense. And apparently, Jones had been nailing it all week, too.
“He didn’t drop any – we had a couple, I would say, errant throws – and he did make one (one-handed catch),” head coach Joe Judge said. “Honestly, (Quarterbacks Coach) Jerry Schuplinski pulled that out of the vault this week, but it wasn't like he invented the play either.”
Judge, who was an assistant on the Patriots team that saw the Philly Special in Super Bowl XLII, noted that both teams actually ran it in that game – Tom Brady just didn’t make his catch, while Nick Foles’ was a TD grab – and it has been run in other instances since. But, that doesn’t mean it’s a “gimmick” play, or needs to be innovative to work.
“You kind of look back in terms of things that come up and sometimes you just watch plays,” Judge said. “Look, you don't have to invent the wheel to drive the car fast. Sometimes, you've just got to take what works for you.”
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Jones doesn’t remember the last time he actually had a catch, maybe back in high school, but when the play was called, he was ready.
“I trust in going through the same process you did all week through the play, recognizing the look we're getting and trying to execute it like we practiced. Just trying to do that,” Jones said. “I think it was a good throw. I don't think the route was very good and I don't think I was moving very fast. I've been on the other end of that, so I get mad at guys and I did the same thing there. I think it was a good throw and Dante's thrown it well all week. He's done a good job with it and just tried to execute it.”
Of course, it takes two to tango, and Pettis, who was just elevated from the practice squad last week, had to do his part, too. As Judge noted, Pettis’ father, Gary, played 11 seasons in Major League Baseball and is currently in the World Series as the Astros’ third base coach, so he wasn’t there to see it – but if Pettis hadn’t nailed it, trouble might have come.
“Dante comes from a baseball family, so I'm sure he's not going for Thanksgiving in the future if he doesn't make that throw,” Judge joked.
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“I thought that was a dime if he would have kept running,” Pettis said with a laugh. “He made a great catch, so I guess it worked out even better. Yeah, I thought it was a pretty good throw, and as soon as he caught it, I turned around and fist pumped.”
Pettis has never played quarterback at any level, although he did throw some passes at Washington. Of course, his stoic “I’ve always thrown well, so I guess that carried over” might have been understated given his dad’s career as an outfielder.
He also laughed that he thought Jones slowed down on the route, which is “a no-no,” but in all seriousness, he also noted how the play almost got blown up before it got started.
“There was a guy right there. I don't know how close it was, but I did see the guy come off the edge and I was just hoping that he got rid of it before he made the tackle,” Pettis said of the exchange with Devontae Booker.
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Not bad, though, for a wide receiver who said “I don’t even know if the coaches really knew I could throw,” and admitted that another wideout might be a better actual substitute QB.
"Kadarius Toney can throw the ball way further. KT can throw the ball like 80 yards just standing there, his arm is pretty crazy," Pettis said, "but I think I'm a little more accurate. My spiral might be a little better."
Still, it was a play that wowed several teammates.
“I have to get a still shot of that and get it signed!” kicker Graham Gano smiled. “That was awesome, but I’m not surprised; DJ’s an unbelievable athlete.”
“It was pretty smooth. I'm just glad he caught it and got up safely, that’s the main thing,” added cornerback James Bradberry, who admitted he never had to cover Jones in practice on that play. “I've always thought Daniel was a very athletic guy.”
And finally, from Logan Ryan: “I didn't know (Jones) had that. Again, there's some stuff I don't know he has. But Daniel's a competitor. I think he shows that he puts his body on the line to do whatever it takes running. I just heard QB1, RB1 and Wide Receiver 1 today.”
Daniel Jones, athlete?
“I don't know how athletic people perceive me to be, but I just try to make plays when the opportunities are there,” he smiled.
For Sunday, he gets an A-plus.
Follow Lou DiPietro on Twitter: @LouDiPietroWFAN
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