EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. (AP) — Just days after joining the New York Giants as a free agent, quarterback Drew Lock is clearing the air about his decision to leave Seattle and move to the East Coast.
Contrary to what Seahawks general manager John Schneider expressed, Lock said the Giants did not offer the 27-year-old the chance to compete with Daniel Jones for the starting job. Nor does he see this as an opportunity to have a big year and cash in like Baker Mayfield did by signing a $100 million deal with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
“Daniel Jones is the starter of this team,” Lock said Friday. “Now, I need to come in and push Daniel to be the best that he can be.”
That's the role that Lock had played for Geno Smith with the Seahawks the past two years, and before that for Teddy Bridgewater with the Broncos in 2021. When Lock was the starter early in his career in Denver, Brett Rypien pushed him.
“I’ve had both sides of this," said Lock, who signed a one-year, $5 million contract with the Giants. “I’ve been a guy to push the starter, I’ve been a guy that’s been pushed by the backups. It’s about making that room the best it can be. If we can do that, the sky’s the limit for that.”
Lock's decision to sign with the Giants (6-11) seemed to catch Schneider off guard.
“They basically sold him on the opportunity to compete to be the starter,” Schneider said Thursday on Seattle Sports Radio 710AM. “And he felt like it was the right opportunity. He looked at Baker Mayfield's opportunity last year and felt that this could be something similar.”
Lock said he called Schneider after agreeing to a deal with New York and thanked him for the past two years and helping him to improve. He said he never mentioned Mayfield, who he considers a close friend.
With Mike Macdonald replacing Pete Carroll as the coach in Seattle, Lock said he would have to learn a new offense no matter where he signed. He also said he has a good relationship with Jones. They were roommates at the 2019 Senior Bowl.
Jones was the sixth pick overall in the draft that year and Lock was taken in the second round at No. 42 by Denver.
Lock had an up-and-down career in Denver. He posted a 4-1 record while starting the final five games of his rookie season but he slipped to 4-9 in his second season. Bridgewater took over as the starter in 2021 and Lock was 1-5 filling in. The former Missouri product was 1-1 in two seasons in Seattle.
“I know I’m a different quarterback,” Lock said. “I know I’m a different guy than what I was two, or three years ago. My first year in Seattle, I’m a different guy my second year there. It’s a product of being around really good coaches, and quarterbacks. Geno was amazing to me. That was one of the harder relationships to leave.”
Lock is looking forward to working with coach Brian Daboll and offensive coordinator Mike Kafka. He called Daboll a “quarterback wizard” because of his work with Josh Allen in Buffalo and he is familiar with Kafka because he is from Kansas City, when Kafka was Patrick Mahomes' quarterbacks coach.
“The ceiling is really high, in my opinion," Lock said. ”I’m excited to get here and show this place what I’m made of."
The Giants, who lost veteran Tyrod Taylor to the Jets in free agency, hope to have Jones ready for the season opener. He tore an ACL against the Raiders in October and had surgery the following month. Lock and Tommy DeVito will probably get most of the work in the OTAs and mandatory minicamp.
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