The Giants defeated the Redskins on Sunday, due in large part to the play of two of the team's young offensive playmakers. On Tuesday, both Daniel Jones and Saquon Barkley were recognized for their career days.
Jones has been nominated for the FedEx Air Player of the Week Award after putting up historic numbers in Washington. The rookie quarterback completed 66.7% of his passes (28 of 42) for 352 yards, five touchdowns and zero interceptions, earning a passer rating of 132.1. The attempts, yardage, touchdown passes and passer rating were all career-highs, while the completion total matched his career-best set at Detroit in Week 8.
This is the second time Jones has been nominated for the award (Week 10 vs. Jets) in what has been a historic season for the number six overall pick in the 2019 draft. Following Sunday's performance, Jones became the first rookie in NFL history to throw for 350+ yards, five touchdowns and zero interceptions in a game. The 22-year-old also joined Fran Tarkenton and Deshaun Watson as the only players in NFL history with three games of four or more touchdowns passes during their rookie seasons.
Jones now holds the franchise record for most touchdown passes by a rookie with 23, surpassing Charlie Conerly's mark of 22 touchdowns set in 1948, with one game left on the year. Jones had already set new franchise records for most passing yards, pass attempts and completions by a rookie quarterback earlier in the season.
The other nominees for the FedEx Air Player of the Week Award are Miami Dolphins QB Ryan Fitzpatrick, who completed 59.6% of his passes (31 of 52) for 419 yards, four touchdowns and one interception for a passer rating of 103.0, and New Orleans Saints QB Drew Brees, who finished the day with a 71.1 completion percentage (27 of 38) and threw for 279 yards, three touchdowns and zero interceptions for a passer rating of 118.2.
Barkley also earned recognition for his outstanding performance against Washington as he has been nominated for the FedEx Ground Player of the Week. The talented second-year back carried the ball 22 times for 189 yards, good for an average of 8.6 yards per carry, and a touchdown. Barkley had several jaw-dropping plays, including a season-long 67-yard touchdown run, that Giants fans have become accustomed to seeing from the 22-year-old since he joined the team last year.
The 189 yards on the ground were a new career-high for Barkley, who also set a career-best and a franchise record with 279 total yards from scrimmage. The Giants' star running back has topped the 100-yard rushing mark for the second consecutive week, and has 422 total yards and four touchdowns over his last two games. His 8.6 yards per attempt were the most in any game this season for a running back with 20 or more carries, which led to Barkley receiving the highest grade among all backs with 10+ carries this week from Pro Football Focus.
Barkley is now up to 911 rushing yards on the season despite missing three and a half games with a high ankle sprain. If he gains 89 yards on the ground against Philadelphia in Week 17, Barkley will become the first player in franchise history with two 1,000-yard seasons to begin his career. He ran for 1,307 yards last season on his way to winning the NFL Rookie of the Year Award.
The other nominees for the FedEx Ground Player of the Week award include Arizona Cardinals RB Kenyan Drake, who ran the ball 24 times for 166 yards (6.9 yards per carry) and two touchdowns, and Green Bay Packers RB Aaron Jones, who ended up with 154 yards on 23 carries (6.7 yards per carry) and two touchdowns.
The FedEx Air and Ground awards are decided by a fan vote each week. Be sure to show your support for Big Blue by voting for both Jones and Barkley for this week's honors.
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