The New York Giants have blasted ESPN’s Elle Duncan after she mocked player Daniel Jone for his statement upon leaving the team.
On Thursday, Duncan read a statement to the press as the team’s press conference opened, saying that it was his dream to have played with the Giants.
“The opportunity to play for the New York Giants was truly a dream come true. I’m extremely grateful to the Mara and Tisch families for the chance to play here. The Giants are truly a first-class organization, and I have nothing but genuine respect and appreciation for the people who have built it and the people who carry on that tradition,” he said.
Duncan, though, found the statement mockworthy during her “Taking the Elle” segment on ESPN’s “SportsCenter.”
“We normally reserve ‘Taking the Elle’ for Fridays, but Giants quarterback Daniel Jones just did something so inexplicable that we made an exception,” Duncan said during the segment. “After being benched this week, Jones took to the podium to say goodbye to the franchise and fans but with, like, seven games left in the season.”
Then she quipped, “I’m sorry, you have to write this down? Didn’t you go to Duke?”
“Do you guys think he had this saved in his notes since, like, 2020? In all seriousness, DJ, I could have saved you like 90 seconds. A re-write: ‘Sorry you paid me $108 million for one playoff win. And I look forward to reviving my career as Brock Purdy’s backup.’ The end,” Duncan exclaimed.
But after Duncan’s ribbing, Giants Senior Vice President of Communications Pat Hanlon took to social media to express his shock at the attack.
“That an #ESPN personality would mock Daniel Jones’ statement today is mind boggling. Given what has happened at that company over past few years, tone deaf,” Hanlon wrote on X.
According to Stephen A. Smith, the Giants organization also contacted ESPN to take a potshot at Duncan.
In the hours after her rant, Duncan became the object of much social media mocking as fans joined the backlash against her.
The attacks apparently stung Duncan enough that she tried to respond and, on Friday, struck back at those claiming she was being disrespectful to Daniel Jones.
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