There’s so much to be thankful for these days. Football season is starting back up, and preseason seems to be going well for the New York Giants. Not to mention, the inter-divisional games, of which they play two each, aren’t as big of a concern as the season’s opponents go. In our tradition of kicking off the new season, we at Last Word on Pro Football are ranking each team’s schedules from most difficult to easiest. Here is the second half, the more optimistic half, of the Giants part in this series.
New York Giants Most Difficult Games
New York Giants Easiest Games of 2019
9. Week 16: at Washington Redskins
By Week 16, Dwayne Haskins could be starting. Let’s just leave it at that, and we’ll get back to this squad in a bit.
10. Week Nine: vs. Dallas Cowboys
In the Giants second matchup with the Dallas Cowboys, there’s faith that Big Blue will have Dallas’ number. Homefield advantage is obviously a factor. Still, the Cowboys are one of the more consistent teams in the NFL, and despite their lack of offseason moves, the question to answer is whether or not the Giants will be able to learn them well enough to control the field. Everyone loves a good Cowboys/Giants matchup, but if the latter team is ready (and they will be, because they love it, too), it’s thank you, next for Big Blue.
11. Week 17: vs. Philadelphia Eagles
Week 17 presents the significant likelihood that the faith of the Philadelphia Eagles, Carson Wentz, will be done. Already, in the season’s previous matchup, there is a chance that the pattern of Wentz’s injury history will take him out. But at this point? I mean, it’s almost guaranteed. Three unreliable backups do not an NFL signal-caller make. Not to mention the home field advantage and prior experience with the playbook after having already met the Eagles in Philly. Based on the records this late in the season, I think we’ll see a lot of starters resting from one of the two teams, and seeing how the Giants don’t have a whole lot of merchandise in the second string and they’re playing for those hometown fans, I don’t think it’s about to be the Blue.
12. Week 8: at Detroit Lions
Whenever I’m having a bad day, I remember that Danny Amendola is in Detroit, and I feel a little bit better. With the acquisition of Mike Daniels, it’s even more apparent that Matt Patricia is working hard to improve the Detroit Lions defense. While they’re making productive moves in the right direction, finally, it’s hard to believe that their pass rush will be able to shut down the Giants, and that even with Sexy Danny on the other side of the ball, there isn’t a whole lot to speak of there either.
13. Week 10: at New York Jets
Ah… don’t you love a good New York on New York matchup? MetLife decked out in cool tones and tailgating amicably with neighbors who support the other team? Considering the pre-season blowout, in which all FOUR of the Giants quarterbacks played (and for the most part, well) and Evan Engram and Saquon Barkley were sat, by Week 10, barring any significant injuries on Big Blue’s end, it’s safe to expect a similar result.
14. Week Three: at Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Jameis Winston could break out… but he’s still quite the head-scratcher. Mike Evans looks good. And there’s veteran Ndamukong Suh, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers biggest acquisition of offseason. Bruce Arians is undoubtedly a top-ten NFL head coach, in my own book. But we still don’t have a good picture of what this team looks like in their defensive strategy, and by Week Three, there isn’t a whole lot of confidence that they’ll have one either. This is a WIN for the Giants, because even if they won’t have a whole not to go off preparation-wise, the Bucs don’t seem to be very well-prepared themselves.
15. Week 15: vs. Miami Dolphins
Despite having one fewer day to prepare, the Giants have this game in the bag. Josh Rosen will hopefully catch a break on his new team at some point this season, but it’s not gonna be against the G-Men. Many even expect that the Miami Dolphins are “tanking” this year for draft prospects in years to come. But even if that isn’t the case, the defense is definitely going to have the same continued issues as usual, and a new one will take time and new talent to install. The Dolphins have a number of difficult matchups early on, and by the time Week 15 comes around, they’re bound to be beaten in every sense. We can expect that once again, the Dolphins will make Hootie cry.
16. Week Four: vs. Washington Redskins
As of now, the Washington Redskins aren’t anywhere close to having selected their starting quarterback. Colt McCoy still isn’t quite ready to play after suffering a broken leg last December. Case Keenum and Dwayne Haskins are next in line. Haskins wasn’t particularly impressive in Washington’s first preseason game. In the last three seasons, Keenum has started for three different teams. He seems poised to do the same for Washington this year, but keep in mind, Keenum has thrown for 64 career touchdowns, and 42 interceptions. Otherwise, Adrian Peterson has age, and neither Derrius Guice nor Jordan Reed has good health. And then, there’s the defense, which leaves much to be desired. This should be an easy, breezy, beautiful, Covergirl guarantee at MetLife.
New York Giants Most Difficult Games
Main photo:
Embed from Getty Images
