The New York Giants offense remains searching for the deep ball

The foundations — the offensive line’s pass protection, deep-threat receivers and playmaking — are in place for the New York Giants to really step up their game on offense this year by making calculated shots down the field.

Although all the pieces are in place, the deep vertical game the Giants have been trying to launch since the arrival of head coach Brian Daboll simply hasn’t materialized for one reason or another.

The advanced metrics show that the Giants are going deeper than they did in Week 1 against the Vikings.

According to NextGen Stats, the Giants attempted a season-high 15% on deep pass attempts last week against the Cowboys and averaged 9.5 air yards per attempt, their second-highest average since Week 2, when Jones averaged 9.9 air yards per attempt.

But overall the results weren’t there. According to Pro Football Focus, Jones has completed just three passes of 15 attempts for more than 20 yards, including one interception and one drop.

He overthrew receivers earlier in the year, but lately he’s been subduing them.

“I think everyone is different,” quarterback Daniel Jones said of the Giants’ difficult ball battles. “I think the first few weeks I threw myself into a few situations. I felt like giving a guy a chance was the way to go and then I fell short on a few.”

Jones said nothing affects his physical ability to hit targets with deep balls, and he believes the deep balls will come eventually.

“I feel like I’m fine now,” he said. “I think it’s a matter of just trusting it and throwing it. I feel like I’ve thrown the ball well throughout my career. I’ve always felt good about this part of my game. That’s why I’m confident that I’ll succeed.”

This weekend, Jones may have to meet all deep ball targets without top receiver Malik Nabers, who is currently in the early stages of the league’s protocol.

“There is no doubt that he has been an important part of our offense so far and someone we have counted on in many areas. So it will change a little bit,” Jones admitted Nabers might not be available to play.

“But we have a lot of confidence in the guys we have out there to win their matches and take the lead. I know we will play well. So we’re confident in whoever is out there and we’re fortunate to have a strong group of receivers and a lot of talented guys.”

Jones added that while the offense remains a work in progress, there has actually been progress since Week 1 and there is still a lot of work to do.

“I think we have a much better sense of what we are doing well. The guys we have, what they’re good at. What our team is good at,” he said.

“We will continue to develop week by week. I think it’s a continuous process, but I feel like we’ve made progress in the first four weeks as far as our offense and our identity. But obviously there’s still work to do to get to where we want to be and we’ve got to find a way to make a few more plays.”