During July, the Last Word On Sports NFL department will be analyzing the schedules of every team in the NFL and ranking each game in order of difficulty (with one being the most difficult). This series will be split up into the eight most difficult games (ranked 1-8) and the eight easiest games (ranked 9-16) for each team. In this article, the New York Giants easiest games are the focus.
New York Giants Easiest Games in 2017
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Week 16 at Cardinals
The Cardinals were in shambles last season. They return in 2017 with an aging Carson Palmer and Larry Fitzgerald. The Giants main cause for concern is dynamic back David Johnson, but considering how strong their defense is, he will be their main and mostly only focus. Since this is a road game, it does add a marginal amount of difficulty to it. This shouldn’t be the toughest game, but it must be treated like a trap game due to Johnson’s explosiveness.
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Week 14 vs. Cowboys
The Cowboys are one of the best teams in the league, but the Giants match up extremely well against them. This won’t be an easy matchup, but it is a very manageable game for the Giants. Being at home gives the Giants the edge in this game.
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Week 2 vs. Lions
This is another manageable home game for the Giants. Matthew Stafford has the potential to throw for 300+ yards in any given game, but the Giants secondary should be able to neutralize his and dynamic receiver Golden Tate‘s home run ability. This could be a repeat of last year, a very low scoring and defensive battle.
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Week 17 vs. Redskins
This could either be the biggest game of the season of another useless week 17 encounter. In previous years, this game has not meant a lot to the Giants. If it holds any value at the end of the season, expect a high scoring affair with neither team backing down.
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Week 5 vs. Chargers
The only reason this game could be challenging is because Philip Rivers is still a good quarterback. However, with every good game he has, he has a terrible one. This game depends on which Rivers shows up to MetLife Stadium. It has trap game potential but if the Giants come out strong, it could be a blowout.
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Week 15 vs. Eagles
A divisional matchup is never easy. With that being said, the Eagles are not in win now mode. Second year quarterback Carson Wentz looks to be the real deal, but it will take more than him to beat the Giants at home. The Eagles also lost a few key defensive players.
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Week 9 vs. Rams
This could very well be a repeat of last season’s matchup. The Giants defense destroyed the Rams offense last season. Now at home, they could put more points on the board and run the score up. The Rams do have a great pass rush, but are not a good team besides that. Maybe second year quarterback Jared Goff makes strides, but it does not seem likely.
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Week 10 at 49ers
This will be the easiest game for the Giants. The 49ers are fielding a team with Brian Hoyer as their starting quarterback. 2017 is a rebuilding year for a young team that should cause little to no problems for this Giants team.
