“It's just a difficult phase. It is what it is.”

The fact that former New York Jets loser Sam Darnold was on the opposing side in Sunday's loss at MetLife Stadium did not help matters.

The Giants hoped that last year's struggles for Jones and the rest of the offense would be over in 2023. Instead, much of what they experienced looked familiar to Big Blue fans who had cheered on only one playoff team in the last eight seasons.

“It's our job to give them something to cheer about and we have to play well to do that and we take that seriously,” Jones said. “They expect us to play well. We expect us to play well. That's what we have to do.”

They didn't play well on Sunday. While it may not be fair, the $40 million Jones will get more flack if the Giants struggle. Some fans even booed the quarterback as he left the stadium through the player exit.

The quarterback completed 22 of 42 passes for 186 yards, two interceptions and five sacks. Jones has not thrown a single touchdown in five consecutive starts.

“Obviously not good enough,” Jones said. “We didn't get in the end zone, score six points. We didn't create a lot of rhythm and flow for ourselves. I've got to be better, definitely play better, give us more chances to make plays and execute more consistently.”

If Jones and the rest of the offense don't play better quickly, things are going to get very bleak in the Big Apple very quickly.