Daniel Jones, the quarterback for the New York Giants, credits a lot of his early success to his former coach, David Cutcliffe. For more than 10 years, Cutcliffe has been an influencing hand on Jones’ career. Cutcliffe, the former coach of Duke University, has had a profound influence on Jones’ development. His biggest influence on Jones is both in the game and in life after football. Together, their relationship mixes sarcasm with real love. This connection has been key throughout the cyclical nature of Jones’s career path.
Cutcliffe has become a stabilizing force in Jones’ life, especially as he navigates the challenges of playing in the NFL. Recognizing Jones’ potential when he was lightly recruited, Cutcliffe’s influence helped shape a young athlete into a promising professional. His coaching style uses an equal part of technical skills and emotional intelligence, constantly reminding his players to be resilient.
One of Cutcliffe’s favorite references comes from Rudyard Kipling’s poem “If,” specifically the stanza that reads, “If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster / And treat those two impostors just the same.” This philosophy encapsulates Cutcliffe’s approach to coaching.
“If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster / And treat those two impostors just the same.” – Rudyard Kipling
Away from the field, Cutcliffe is a study of folksy charm and acerbic wit. He does an amazing job of doing that typically through a very relatable analogy to help teach that lesson. One great example, for instance, is when he compares failures in football to touching a hot stove.
“If you’ve ever cooked and touched the eye of a stove, you get your hand off there with amazing quickness, right? OK, same thing. When you get knocked down in football or you get beat, it’s one simple phrase: hot stove. I don’t want to hear it. Get your ass up. Be the first one back up.” – David Cutcliffe
That no-nonsense, keep-it-real approach has led to a special bond and trust between Jones and Cutcliffe. In the article, the old quarterback boosts up the giant Cutcliffe’s career-making power again.
“There’s no doubt I wouldn’t be here without him and the influence he’s had on me as a player and as a person,” – Daniel Jones
“I think what I learned on the field from him at Duke was huge. And then going into the NFL, him advocating for me as someone who NFL executives and coaches trust and know his pedigree, know his background, went a long way for me,” – Daniel Jones
Throughout their deep-rooted relationship, Cutcliffe has always given Jones the coaching keys to raise his level of play. This support became an incredible asset during some of the darkest years with the Giants.
“A lot of those tougher years in New York, he helped me a ton through that, giving me coaching points and things I needed to work on, but also encouraging me and helping me realize a lot of things that I needed to do to improve and help build confidence,” – Daniel Jones
As Jones moves closer to each new season, he’s still relying on Cutcliffe’s guidance. Just before he reported to training camp, Jones called looking for some last-minute advice.
Their connection stayed strong even after Cutcliffe moved into an advisory role with the Southeastern Conference in Birmingham. He keeps his football passion alive by obsessively watching every single Indianapolis Colts game. He still roots unabashedly for former player Philip Rivers and now tracks Daniel Jones closely.
“I consider talking about Daniel Jones’ performance this season as my favorite topic,” – David Cutcliffe
For Jones, having Cutcliffe in his corner is worth its weight in gold. That, more than anything, is why Cutcliffe is able to reach him as an athlete and as a person.
“I think it’s helpful to have someone you really trust, someone who’s seen you kind of grow on the field and off the field as a player and knows what you are at your core,” – Daniel Jones
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