Daniel Jones offered a classy goodbye, and then the Giants offered a classy gesture in return. The Giants released Jones on Friday after a rocky six-year run as the team’s successor to Eli Manning. There are still seven games left in the season, but the Giants benched Jones on Monday with the team off to a 2-8 start. And since the 27-year-old quarterback clearly had no future with the franchise, the front office didn’t delay the inevitable. “Daniel came to see me this morning and asked if we would release him. We mutually agreed that would be best for him and for the team,” Giants president John Mara said in a statement. “Daniel has been a great representative of our organization, first class in every way. His handling of this situation yesterday exemplifies just that. We are all disappointed in how things have worked out. We hold Daniel in high regard and have a great appreciation for him. We wish him nothing but the best in the future.” By parting ways now, Jones is free to sign with any team after he clears waivers. That is expected because he has two years remaining on his $160 million contract, which likely no team will want to pay. The Giants, meanwhile, don’t get any benefit outside of removing a potential distraction. The salary cap ramifications were the same whether they released Jones now or after the season. They’ll save $19.3 million while eating $22.2 million in dead cap space on what would’ve been a $41.6 million cap hit for Jones next year. “I’ve got a lot of respect for him,” said head coach Brian Daboll, who addressed the team on Jones’ release prior to Friday’s walkthrough practice. “True pro and wish him all the best.” Jones, the No. 6 overall pick in the 2019 NFL Draft, thanked the Giants on Thursday for an experience that he called “truly a dream come true.” But the Duke product never materialized into a franchise quarterback, posting a 24-45-1 record as the starter including 3-13 after signing a four-year extension in March of 2023. The Giants had losing records in five of his six seasons, the exception being the 2022 campaign where Jones led the team to a 9-7-1 record and a playoff win in Minnesota. He missed 11 games last season because of a neck injury and a torn ACL. Jones ranks fifth in franchise history in passing yards (14,582) while also totaling 70 passing touchdowns, 47 interceptions, 2,179 rushing yards and 15 rushing touchdowns in 70 games. “I wish I could have done more,” Jones said. “I’m 100 percent accountable for my part. I did not play well enough, consistently enough to help the team get the results. The reality of the NFL is it’s hard to win games and it requires consistent performance from everyone involved. We didn’t do that well enough. So, the idea to change something happens and I understand. I love the game. I love being part of a team. I’m excited for the next opportunity. I know that there’s a lot of good football in front of me and I’m excited about that.” Jones began the week as the No. 4 quarterback on the depth chart when the Giants named Tommy DeVito as the starter, kept Drew Lock as the backup and signed Tim Boyle to the practice squad. Daboll wouldn’t say at the time whether he expected Jones to stay with the team for the rest of the season, only stating that Jones came in with a “good attitude” and would do individual drills and throw routes in practice. That happened Wednesday, but when the team moved indoors Thursday because of inclement weather, Jones became a scout team safety. He said he was “still processing” his future but for the time being accepted his role in helping the Giants prepare to host the Buccaneers on Sunday. Daboll admitted he didn’t anticipate Jones asking for his release, yet ultimately it made little sense to have Jones stick around for six more weeks when he wasn’t going to play another snap in a game. So the Giants officially closed the book on Jones in New York. “This is not an easy situation when things happen like this,” Daboll said. “He put a lot into it. He’s a great young man. It’s never easy.”