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Inside the Numbers

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Inside the Numbers: Daniel Jones' rushing records

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EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. – In the NFL's 101-season history, more than 1,800 players have 75 or more rushing attempts. Only one player among them has a per-carry average of at least 7.6 yards. That player is Daniel Jones.

As a practical matter, that is a statistical footnote or a likely fleeting bit of trivia. The league isn't handing out career achievement awards after 20 games and 76 carries. In the NFL's Official Record & Fact Book, a minimum of 750 attempts are needed to qualify for the career highest average gain mark. The top two all-time are quarterbacks who played for multiple teams, Michael Vick (7.00-yard average on 873 carries) and Randall Cunningham (6.36-yard average on 775 attempts).

In his two seasons as the Giants' quarterback, Jones has rushed for 575 yards on 76 carries, a 7.56-yard average that the Elias Sports Bureau said is the highest ever by a player with that many attempts. All he must do to eclipse Vick is maintain it for another 674 carries.

No one actually expects that to happen, but Jones' production running the ball this season suggests his nickname could be changed to Danny Wheels.

Jones is third among NFL quarterbacks in rushing yardage this season, behind Kyler Murray (437 yards) and Lamar Jackson (346). His 575 rushing yards since the start of the 2019 season rank fifth among quarterbacks:

  • Lamar Jackson (Baltimore) - 1,552
  • Kyler Murray (Arizona) - 981
  • Josh Allen (Buffalo) - 714
  • Russell Wilson (Seattle) - 579
  • Daniel Jones (Giants) - 575

*Jones leads the Giants with 296 rushing yards on 31 carries, a 9.5-yard average that is the highest by an NFL quarterback with that many attempts since 1992, when Pro Football Hall of Famer Steve Young averaged 9.6 yards (297 yards through 31 carries) for the San Francisco 49ers. The last NFL player to maintain such a high average at this statistical juncture was wide receiver Tavon Austin, who gained 303 yards on his first 31 carries (9.8-yard avg.) for the 2015 St. Louis Rams.

*If Jones maintains his current average, or even if it dips a bit, he will set a franchise record. The highest rushing average in a season by a Giant with at least 30 attempts is 6.95 by Fran Tarkenton in 1967 (44 attempts, 306 yards).

*Jones' 296 rushing yards are the most by a Giants quarterback through seven games since Frank Filchock ran for 324 yards in 1946.

*The second-year pro has already exceeded his rookie total of 279 yards and needs just 11 more to set the quarterback franchise rushing record in the Super Bowl era:

  • 1967 Fran Tarkenton - 306
  • 1968 Fran Tarkenton - 301
  • 2020 Daniel Jones - 296
  • 2019 Daniel Jones - 279

*In the Giants' loss last Thursday in Philadelphia, Jones led all rushers with 92 yards, exactly double the total of Eagles running back Boston Scott. That was the most rushing yards by a Giants quarterback in a game since Filchock had 108 against at Pittsburgh on Oct. 6, 1946.

*Jones gained the majority of his rushing yards on an 80-yard run in the third quarter. It was the longest run by a Giants' quarterback in the Super Bowl era, easily eclipsing his 49-yarder the previous week against Washington. The 80-yarder was also the longest run by a quarterback in NFL history that did not result in a touchdown.

*Jones has had the Giants' longest run in seven games, the highest total by a quarterback in the Super Bowl era.

*Jones also threw two touchdown passes against the Eagles, raising his two-year total to 29. That is tied for the fourth-highest total by a quarterback in his first 20 games with the Giants:

  • Fran Tarkenton (1967-68) - 41
  • Charlie Conerly (1948-49) - 36
  • Y.A. Tittle (1961-62) - 33
  • Earl Morrall (1965-66) - 29
  • Daniel Jones (2019-20) - 29

*Jones completed 20 of 30 passes in Philadelphia, a 66.7 percentage that ties for his third-highest in a single game:

  • Sept. 29, 2019 vs. Washington 74.2 (23/31)
  • Oct. 27, 2019 at Detroit 68.3 (28/41)
  • Dec. 22, 2019 at Washington 66.7 (28/42)
  • Oct. 22, 2020 at Philadelphia 66.7 (20/30)

*Against the Eagles, Jones threw two touchdown passes for the fourth time in his career. He has thrown four touchdown passes in a game twice and five in a game once. Jones has never had a three-touchdown pass game.

*The Giants had two of their three longest drives of the season against the Eagles, possessions on which they traveled 97 and 88 yards. They had a 95-yard series in Chicago.

*The 97-yard drive took 15 plays and 7:50 to complete, the Giants' second-highest play total and third-longest possession in terms of time this season. But it was the longest by both measures that resulted in a touchdown. They had possessions of 14 plays and 9:14 vs. Washington and 19 plays and 8:50 against Pittsburgh that ended with interceptions.

*The Giants owned a 21-10 fourth-quarter lead against the Eagles. Since the start of the 2018 season, they have lost five games in which they held a lead of 10 or more points – three against Philadelphia.

*Eagles quarterback Carson Wentz threw for 359 yards on Thursday, the highest total by a Giants opponent since Tampa Bay's Jameis Winston passed for 380 yards on Sept. 22, 2019 in Jones' starting debut. Wentz's 55-yard pass to John Hightower was the longest against the Giants since Dallas' Dak Prescott and Michael Gallup hooked up for a 62-yarder on Sept. 8, 2019.

*The Giants' first three NFC East games were decided by a total of five points, the team's lowest total since the 1970 merger. The previous low was an eight-point margin in their first three division games in 2016. The last NFL team to have its first three division games decided by no more than five points was Philadelphia in 1999 (also five).

View photos of Giants quarterback Daniel Jones throughout his NFL career.

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