After redshirting his first year at Duke in 2015, Jones became the starting quarterback in his sophomore season in 2016 after quarterback Thomas Sirk suffered a season-ending injury. Jones started all 12 games, completing 270 of 430 passes for 2,836 yards, sixteen touchdowns and nine interceptions.
2017
In 2017, he completed 230 of 413 passes for 2,439 yards, 14 touchdowns and 11 interceptions. Jones was named MVP of the 2017 Quick Lane Bowl where he went 27/40 with 252 passing yards and 2 touchdowns, along with 86 rushing yards from sixteen carries for one touchdown.
2018
During his senior year, Jones was named the MVP in the 2018 Independence Bowl, where he went 30–41 with 423 passing yards and five touchdowns. He later played in the 2019 Senior Bowl for the North team, and was also the MVP of that game, going 8/11 with 115 passing yards and one touchdown.
Statistics
Professional career
2019
Jones was drafted by the New York Giants in the first round with the sixth overall pick in the 2019 NFL Draft. Jones made his professional debut on August 8, 2019, in the first preseason game against the interleague-rival New York Jets, where he completed all five of his passes for 67 yards and a touchdown. Despite a stellar preseason, Jones was named the backup behind Eli Manning. Jones played his first regular season game on September 8, 2019, against the Dallas Cowboys in relief of Manning, where he completed 3-of-4 passes for 17 yards and lost a fumble as the Giants lost 35–17. On September 17, 2019, Jones was named the starter over Manning for the Week 3 matchup against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. In his first start, Jones completed 23 out of 36 passes for 336 yards with a 112.7 passer rating and two passing touchdowns along with 28 rushing yards and two rushing touchdowns in a 32–31 comeback win against the Buccaneers despite losing two fumbles. He became the first Giants' rookie quarterback to win his first career start since Scott Brunner in 1980. Jones led the Giants back from an 18-point deficit to beat the Buccaneers and became the seventh rookie quarterback in NFL history since 2010 to have a game-winning drive in their first career start. He was also named NFC Offensive Player of the Week for his performance in Week 3. On September 29, in his second start, Jones led the Giants to a 24–3 victory over the Washington Redskins. After the game, Jones became the third quarterback in the Giants' history after Phil Simms and Travis Tidwell to begin their career with two wins as a starting quarterback for the franchise. Jones played his first game on prime time on Thursday Night Football in Week 6 against the New England Patriots. In the game, Jones threw for 161 yards, one touchdown, and three interceptions in the 35–14 loss. In Week 8, against the Detroit Lions, he had 322 passing yards and four passing touchdowns in a 31–26 defeat. In Week 10 against the New York Jets, Jones threw for 308 yards and four touchdowns in the 34–27 loss. In Week 16, Jones threw for career highs of 352 passing yards and five passing touchdowns as the Giants defeated the Washington Redskins in overtime 41–35. In the process, Jones became the fifth quarterback in NFL history to throw five touchdown passes in a game as a rookie. He also became the only rookie quarterback in NFL history to throw for 350 passing yards with five touchdowns and zero interceptions in a single game. He was named the Pepsi Offensive Rookie of the Week for his efforts in the Week 16 win. In Week 17 against the Philadelphia Eagles, Jones threw for 301 yards, one touchdown, and one interception during the 34–17 loss. Jones finished his rookie season with 3,027 passing yards, 24 passing touchdowns, and 12 interceptions to go along with 45 carries for 279 rushing yards, two rushing touchdowns, and had a league-leading 18 fumbles with 11 of them lost.
Most passing touchdowns in a single game by a rookie quarterback: 5
First rookie to have three games with 4 touchdown passes and no interceptions.
Personal life
Jones was born in Charlotte, North Carolina, on May 27, 1997. He is the oldest son of Becca and Steve Jones. He has an older sister, also named Becca, who played field hockey at Davidson College, a younger brother, Bates, who plays basketball at Davidson, and a younger sister, Ruthie, who plays soccer at Duke. Jones graduated from Duke University in December 2018 with a degree in economics.
