New York Giants head coach Joe Judge may not be able to utter Daniel Jones’ name in interviews out of fear of showing some type of favoritism, but Jones is getting past that.

On Monday night, Jones was in attendance at Madison Square Garden for the New York Knicks’ 125-123 upset win over the Houston Rockets and also appeared a guest on the “MSG 150 Final” which aired after the game. He shared some thoughts on Judge, expressing excitement about the direction of the franchise under his no-nonsense leadership approach.

“I like Coach. I’ve enjoyed the time I’ve spent with him and just getting to know him a little bit,” Jones told host Alan Hahn when asked his impression of Judge. “What you see is what you get. Very straightforward. Hard-nosed guy. I’m looking forward to working with him. We’re excited about the future.”

Jones is finally out from under the shadow of Eli Manning, who retired after the season. Jones told Hahn how fortunate he was to have been around Manning in his final year.

“It was huge for me. To have someone who has played as long as Eli did, at the level he did, to be able to just watch him on a day in, day out basis and learn from him, ask him questions, it was an extremely valuable experience for me being my first year in the league. I’m very grateful for all he did for me to help me develop. He’s a Hall of Famer and to have that opportunity to work with him was special and huge for me,” Jones said.

Jones had a good rapport with former head coach Pat Shurmur and offensive coordinator Mike Shula. They’re gone and in the door now is former Dallas Cowboys head coach Jason Garrett, who assumes the role as the Giants’ OC.

“I’m just trying to get to know him now,” said Jones. “And doing what I can to improve as a player before I can really start to work with him and get in his system. He’s had a lot of success coaching and has had a lot of successful quarterbacks. So I’m excited for the opportunity to work with him.”

Jones is the Giants’ starting quarterback regardless of whether Judge wants to publicly say it or not. They all need to get on the same page this summer and realize the potential of the weaponry they have on offense.