Daniel Jones not good enough to get Giants a needed win over Cowboys

It was a confounding night for Daniel Jones. It was a night that, in a painful way, encapsulates his career in that he was really good at times, but even then it was just not good enough. Jones, the Giants’ much-maligned quarterback, wasn’t the reason they lost to the Cowboys, 20-15, on Thursday night at MetLife Stadium to fall to 1-3 and into the basement of the NFC East. But he wasn’t good enough to carry them to a victory, either. Jones was good Thursday, completing 29 of 40 passes for 281 yards with and a garbage-time Hail Mary interception.But the most damning statistic next to his name on the scoresheet was the “0” under the “TD” category. Jones and the Giants lost this game kicking five field goals without a touchdown. Bill Parcells, the former great Giants head coach, famously said quarterbacks are judged by how often they get their team in the zone and how often they lead their team to victory. Jones, though he may have deserved better on this night, helping the Giants control the tempo of the game (35:37 in time of possession to Dallas’ 24:23), making good decisions and slinging the ball around, failed on both of those Parcells benchmarks. Still, after the game, current Giants head coach Brian Daboll went out of his way to praise his quarterback, as did Jones’ teammates. Jones looked to be a game away from being benched after a terrible, tentative performance in a season-opening home loss to the Vikings, but has played well the past three games — silencing any chatter about his losing his job. “Three games in a row … I’m proud of him,’’ Daboll said.

“He’s made good decisions and thrown the ball where he needs to throw the ball.I’ve thought for three games, he’s been locked in.

He’s played well, he’s seen the field, he’s delivered the ball where he needs to. “I’m proud of how he’s performed, how he’s prepared.’’ Still, there was more out there for Jones.The throw he surely wants back mos...