When he took the field on the fast track inside the Caesars Superdome, John Ross saw it. The Saints defenders saw No. 12 in white and just like that, they began waving at each other to play deeper.

“Like, ‘Get back,’ ’’ Ross said Monday.

Get back, indeed.

“I kinda want to be more than that,’’ Ross said.

This is understandable. Ross, 25, is renowned for his speed. It is the reason the Bengals made him a first-round draft pick five years ago. It is the reason the Giants took a flier on him this season. It is the reason why Ross now must be considered an invitee to an exclusive group. Call it the Daniel Jones Target Club.

Based on what was on display in New Orleans on Sunday, the time could come in the next week or so when the Giants are going to be confronted with some wonderfully difficult decisions as to who gets to play ball with Jones.

The plan heading into this season was intriguing on paper and at times nauseating on the field. Three games in, all the high-priced talent and valuable draft capital was struggling to return from injuries, inactivity and with familiarity. So much of it came together in a 27-21 overtime victory over the Saints that it is fair to project a crowd gathering around the 24-year-old Jones — a crowd of gifted playmakers all anxious for their opportunity to light it up.

In what alternate universe is this a thing?

“We have shown glimpses of what we can be as an offense throughout these first four games,’’ Jones said.

The grand plan for 2021 was to surround Jones with so much talent to throw to and hand the ball off to that he could showcase his extreme athletic ability and smarts without having the added pressure of overreaching.

Then the season started and it was all on Jones. He had to throw it and run it and he was overextended. Free agent additions Kenny Golladay and tight end Kyle Rudolph were limited coming off injuries. Rookie first round pick Kadarius Toney got COVID, then a strained hamstring in a bumpy NFL indoctrination. Saquon Barkley, coming off reconstructive knee surgery, was worked in slowly. Tight end Evan Engram hurt his calf and missed the first two games. Ross hurt his hamstring and missed seven weeks of work, including the first three games.

Golladay predicted the offense would be a work in progress and he was proven correct.

It did not all come together against the Saints as much as it revealed what might be attainable. Golladay looked more like the player the Giants signed to a $72 million contract. Toney put on display the start-and-stop dynamism that should make him a broken tackle machine. Barkley scored on a 54-yard reception that featured his uncommon turn-any-play-into-something-big capability. Rudolph broke open for a 20-yard catch on the left sideline to set up a third-quarter field goal. Engram did not do much but he can be a useful safety-valve option. Ross, nearly a forgotten man stashed away on injured reserve, showed his speed as he ran past two defenders and hauled in a 52-yard touchdown pass the first time he touched the ball in a Giants uniform.

“We ain’t got time for that,” said coach Joe Judge, when asked about easing Ross into the action. “There’s nothing to hide, that dude is fast.”

The speed factor Ross brings adds another element to what, when all healthy, is a well-rounded group of big, small, quick and elusive.

“There’s no secret I’m fast,’’ said Ross, who ran the 40-yard dash in 4.22 at the NFL Scouting Combine. “I have to continue to show why I should be in there for multiple reasons. I never want to be a one-trick pony.’’

Ross did more than run by the Saints. He was a huge factor in overtime, running a comeback route for 17 yards and two plays later picking up a first down with a slant that gained 8 yards.

That Sterling Shepard — off to a flying start back in his favored slot role — and deep-threat Darius Slayton both missed the game with strained hamstrings magnifies the talent the Giants assembled for Jones. That he passed for a career-high 402 yards without those two is a sign that there is more to bite off this aerial meal.

When Shepard and Slayton return — possibly this week at Dallas, more likely the following week against the Rams — Judge and offensive coordinator Jason Garrett will be staring at Golladay, Toney, Shepard, Slayton and Ross as wide receiver options.

“I don’t know if I’d have the case of having too many guys to throw the ball to,’’ Judge said. “In terms of having all those guys available at the game when they’re all up and healthy, yeah, to me you want to have as many good players at the game as possible.’’

As many as possible could be a good problem for the Giants and Jones to have.

More to take away from the Giants’ first victory of 2021:

For Giants fans, seeing their team lose back-to-back games on field goals as time expired was just more of the same, an indictment of a group that does not know how to win. On the outside, the two losses — 30-29 in Washington, 17-14 at home to the Falcons — revealed something different: a team not far away from claiming success.  

“Give credit to New York,’’ Saints coach Sean Payton said. “They hung in there. Certainly, we didn’t feel like we came into this game that we were seeing an 0-3 team. We knew how well they played against Atlanta and Washington. Any time that you have a game that goes into overtime when you lead for most of the game and you lose, it’s frustrating.” 

Four defensive players were on the field for all 68 snaps: safeties Logan Ryan and Xavier McKinney, cornerback James Bradberry and inside linebacker Tae Crowder.  Cornerback Adoree’ Jackson would have played all 68, but he settled for 66 after he needed to come off briefly to check out his knee. On the line, Leonard Williams (62 snaps) was in for 91 percent of the plays on defense, a higher workload than usual.  Three safeties was the predominant look: Julian Love played 47 snaps, mostly in the second half, as Jabrill Peppers was limited to only 19 snaps after tweaking his hamstring in the second quarter. Because of this, outside linebacker Azeez Ojulari was in for only 37 snaps, and streak of three consecutive games with a sack to start his NFL career ended.

The offensive line rotation is no more. All five starters played all 63 snaps. Nate Solder at right tackle did a commendable job on dangerous Cameron Jordan, who had no sacks and only one quarterback hit. On the other side, Tanoh Kpassagnon did even less (no sacks, no quarterback hits) against Andrew Thomas, who had his way at left tackle.  Matt Skura made his Giants debut as the fourth starting left guard in four games. In his first NFL appearance at left guard (of his previous 51 NFL starts with the Ravens, 37 came at center, 12 at right guard and three as an extra tight end), the 28-year-old Skura did the job as a pass protector and was flagged for one penalty, a holding call late in the second quarter. It was the only penalty on the offensive line.

Golladay (92 percent of the snaps) and Barkley (89 percent) being eased in are things of the past.  

This was the Giants’ first victory in New Orleans in 28 years. Of course, they do not make this trip very often: The Giants had lost their previous five games in the Big Easy.

Comeback?  Did you say comeback? This was the first time in nine years the Giants won a game in which they trailed by 11 or more points in the fourth quarter. The last time they did it was Sept. 16, 2012, when they beat the Buccaneers, 41-34, after trailing 27-16. The Giants did not win any games in 2020 after trailing in the fourth quarter. This was their first since Sept. 22, 2019, in Daniel Jones’s first NFL start, when he rallied the Giants from a 31-25 deficit to win 32-31.

Call this the Eli Manning Effect. Manning could have saved himself several career interceptions if he was more judicious late in the first half of games or late in the second half of one-sided games. Manning never tried to protect his stats or his passer rating, and without hesitation fired low-percentage passes or Hail Marys attempting to get a score just before halftime. This is exactly what Jones did in New Orleans, and he was intercepted by safety Marcus Williams on a Hail Mary on the final play of the first half. It was the first interception for Jones after throwing 124 passes this season without one.  Dating back to last season, Jones has only two interceptions in his last 331 pass attempts, covering more than 10 games.

This is not going to last long. Jones ran for 27 yards to increase his team-high season total to 188 rushing yards. Barkley ran for 52 yards and is at 186 rushing yards. The Giants want Barkley, not Jones, to lead the team in rushing, and the changing of the guard should come soon.

It is often when you least expect it. Graham Gano hit a Giants-record 37 consecutive field goals, dating back to last season, tying him with Jason Myers of the Seahawks for the fourth-longest streak in NFL history. Myers missed one last week. Gano missed one inside the perfect conditions of the Superdome from only 35 yards out.

Remember Aldrick Rosas? There are times Saints coach Sean Payton wishes he could forget him. The Giants thought they had a real find when Rosas made 32 of 33 field-goal attempts in 2018. He slumped in 2019 (12 of 17) and then was released in June 2020 after he was arrested in California on three misdemeanors after he was involved in a hit-and-run accident. Rosas kicked for the Jaguars in 2020, and is only 1 of 4 for the Saints this season. He missed on an ill-advised 58-yard attempt against the Giants. “At some point, we have to be able to kick a field goal,’’ Payton said. “Hindsight, I would have punted. I felt that way after he missed it. The next play they scored a touchdown.”  Indeed, after Rosas was wide right from long distance in the second quarter, the Giants got the ball on their own 48-yard line. Taking over at midfield empowered the Giants to call a deep shot to Ross, who scored on a 52-yard hookup from Jones.