Front Porch Football

In Defense of Daniel Jones

by Chris Paschal

The title says it all. This is a piece that has an agenda. I am not denying that. I went to high school with Daniel. We played on the same football team. I started on the offensive line and he started at quarterback. I might be the most biased voice you will hear on the topic. I also don’t watch the NFL. I have no idea if Daniel will be a great pro or not. That’s not for me to add my two cents on.

The reason you should listen to me is because unlike all the other bloviating pundits you listen to, I actually do my homework. And when you do your homework, you understand why all the claims that “Daniel isn’t exciting” or “Daniel was an average college quarterback” or “Daniel doesn’t have the stats,” are garbage.

And after you do your homework, you realize that the claims on ESPN by Max Kellerman and the claims by Colin Cowherd that Dwayne Haskins is a much better quarterback are outrageous. To prove this, I am going to show my work – something the big network pundits don’t like to do. Here is what the comparison between Dwayne Haskins and Daniel Jones shows us.

Roster Talent Matters

If you disagree with this point, you don’t watch football. I could use a number of illustrations to prove this point (Jake Bentley with Deebo Samuel vs. Jake Bentley without Deebo Samuel, for starters), but I think most of you agree with that assertion.

When you look at the weapons that Dwayne Haskins had at his disposal compared to what Daniel Jones had at his disposal, it’s almost mind blowing. There is a bigger disparity between Duke’s roster and Ohio State’s roster than there is between Duke’s roster and IMG Academy’s roster. I’m not kidding. To prove this, I examined four recruiting cycles between the years of 2015 and 2018 via 247Sports.

In 2015, Ohio State had the seventh best recruiting class in the country. Duke had the twelfth best recruiting class in the ACC. Duke didn’t have a single offensive signee within the Top 500 Prospects. Ohio State had seven.

In 2016, Ohio State had the fourth best recruiting class in the country. Duke had the sixth best in the ACC. Duke’s best offensive signee was a tight end who was ranked 321nd. Ohio State had ten offensive signees within the top 200.

In 2017, Ohio State had the second best recruiting class in the country. Duke had the eighth best in the ACC.

In 2018, Ohio State had the second best recruiting class in the country. Duke had the twelfth best class in the ACC. Ohio State had 11 offensive signees within the top 400. Duke didn’t have a single offensive signee inside the top 500.

You get my point?

Ohio State had a superior offensive line and a superior receiving corps. Not to mention a rushing attack that could keep defenses honest. This matters. Why does Dwayne Haskins look so good? Because according to team rankings, Haskins was sacked on percentage close to half the number of times Daniel Jones was when attempting a pass. Half.

When you watch Dwayne Haskins tape, it’s impressive. He is a great quarterback. I am not arguing the contrary. But upon closer examination, you notice something telling. Unbelievable wide receiver play. So many of Haskins best throws were deep balls to wide open receivers who had blown by their defender. Makes sense. One of his favorite targets was Parris Campbell who ran a 4.31 forty-yard dash at the NFL Combine.

Daniel didn’t have that luxury. I’d argue that Duke’s roster was substantially better than a single team they faced last season – North Carolina Central. Ohio State’s roster was better than every single team they faced. Penn State, Michigan, maybe Michigan State, maybe Washington were comparable. Maybe.