PITTSBURGH – New York Giants quarterback Daniel Jones took all the first-team reps at practice this week and is not expected to be on the line Monday night against the Pittsburgh Steelers despite being pulled in the fourth quarter last week, they said multiple sources told ESPN.

Jones went to the bench in a 28–6 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles and was replaced by backup Drew Lock. Coach Brian Daboll said he was looking for a “spark.” It didn’t happen. Lock went 3-of-8 passing for 6 yards.

A handful of Giants players told ESPN this week that they were not pushing for a permanent change at quarterback entering Monday night’s game. Jones is their starter. Several players noted that things might be different if Tyrod Taylor was still on the roster. He’s not. It’s still Jones’ team.

Taylor was the backup the past two seasons. He signed with the New York Jets this offseason.

It was a struggle for Jones and the 2-5 Giants, especially at home. They scored just one offensive touchdown in four home games. Jones has six touchdown passes and four interceptions in seven starts this season. New York has the 31st ranked offense with an average of 14.1 points per game entering Monday night.

Jones was not happy with the situation after the Oct. 20 loss and throughout the week. He tries not to think about what would happen if he struggled Monday night or if he made progress.

“I’m just going to focus on playing well. I think playing well and winning the game puts us all in the best position,” Jones said during the week. (Daboll) can make his decision, he’s the head coach, so my job is to play well and that’s what I’m focusing on.”

Jones would not say whether he has received any further reassurance other than that he will start on Monday evening. Daboll told the team in the locker room after last week’s loss that Jones was the starter going forward. He did not specify more than that.

Daboll also wouldn’t specify whether he has given his quarterback any reassurance that he won’t be pulled in the middle of the game again. Just that their focus was on playing well.

“That’s where our focus is,” Daboll said this week.

Jones has been the Giants’ clear starter since the start of his rookie year. He was drafted sixth overall by New York in 2019.

This is his sixth season as a starter. Despite ups and downs, Jones was signed to a four-year contract worth $160 million after a strong 2022 season. This is the second year of that deal.

But the Giants have struggled since then, going 8-16. Jones had a neck injury that cost him time and tore the ACL in his right knee midway through last season. He has come back physically strong. The knee has not been a noticeable problem.

Still, the Giants made their thoughts on his long-term future clear with their offseason actions. The team took a good look at quarterbacks in the draft. They even tried to trade one. All of this was documented during an offseason “Hard Knocks.”

Jones has followed it all closely. He admittedly “wasn’t thrilled” when he heard and saw about the Giants’ interest in quarterbacks. The same can be said about being against the Eagles.