Daniel Jones needs to prove worth without Andrew Thomas and maybe go-to Saquon Barkley

There is no handwringing when it comes to the Giants’ quarterback. There are no sky-is-falling pronouncements. It’s the other quarterback in town who has inspired angst among the faithful across the first month of this season. Zach Wilson is the marked man.

Daniel Jones remains, in many ways, a puzzle.

That is about to change.

The Giants host the Seahawks on Monday night in MetLife Stadium, the third time in four games that they will be featured in prime time, and they have mostly been even less-ready-for-prime-time than the Charles Rocket/Gilbert Gottfried cast that nearly sank “Saturday Night Live.”

It hasn’t helped that the first two prime-time opponents, the Cowboys and Niners, are both championship aspirants who played every bit that part when they played the Giants. Jones was awful against the Cowboys, but everyone was awful that night. He wasn’t great against the 49ers, but that’s a tough ask for anyone.

In essence, he has had one terrific half, the final 30 minutes against the Cardinals in which he powered the Giants to a huge comeback for their lone win of the season so far. It was a reminder of what Jones can be, and a refreshing one when you consider the $160 million contract that is certain to serve as a prism for everything Jones does.

He needs to be terrific Monday. He needs to be the equal of his contract against the Seahawks, especially with a brutal two-game road swing approaching to AFC East behemoths Miami and Buffalo the next two weeks.

Giants quarterback Daniel Jones hands the ball off to running back Saquon Barkley during practice.Charles Wenzelberg / New York Post

“Without a doubt it’s a big game, and we’re excited for the opportunity,” Jones said this week. “We’re going to do what we always do and prepare and get ready to go. We’re excited to get out there.”

They’d better be. And he’d better be. It’s hard to envision the Giants being able to do anything close to what they want to accomplish this year if they can’t avenge the 27-13 beating the Seahawks administered the Giants last October. And it’s hard to imagine the Giants beating Seattle if Jones isn’t ready to make a serious statement on his own behalf.

It won’t be easy, by any measure. Jones won’t have his principal security fail-safe, Andrew Thomas. It’s unknown if he’ll have Saquon Barkley as his chief foxhole guy in the backfield behind him, and even if Barkley can answer the bell, it’s hard to know how close to explosive he can be coming off a high ankle sprain.

“They’re a good defense,” Jones said of the Seahawks. “A lot of the same players as last year. So definitely, we’ll study that. Some differences here and there in what they’re doing this year, but a lot of the same stuff shows up. It’s a similar system. So yeah, I think we’ll look to that where we can but understand it’s a new year with a different team. We’ll have a good game plan and be ready to go.”

After having a quick four-day turnaround between the Cardinals and 49ers games, the Giants will have had the luxury of an extended mini-bye lasting 11 days. And you have to believe that they want to do everything and anything possible to remove the sour taste that the 40-0 drubbing the Cowboys laid on them the last time they played in front of the home fans.

One thing is certain: The Giants want to reverse what has been a troubling habit of scuffling out of the gate, falling behind and having to play catch-up the rest of the way.

Saquon Barkley running during practice at the New York Giants training facility.Charles Wenzelberg / New York Post

“Yeah, it’s certainly a point of emphasis,” Giants coach Brian Daboll said. “We’ve got to do a good job of putting them in good positions, and we’ve got to go out there and execute. Whether that’s third downs early on, or negative plays on both sides, we have to do a good job of really controlling the game on early downs so we get some advantage on whether we skip third downs or have shorter third downs.”

On the offensive side, that’s going to fall on Jones. And he knows it.

“I think we’ve moved the ball well the first couple of drives in two of the games,” he said, “but I think we’ve got to finish with points, finish in the end zone, and execute all the way down the field, and score a touchdown. It’s just about sustaining that execution.”