With the NFL’s 2022 schedule now released, Last Word on Pro Football is analyzing the schedules of all 32 NFL teams. Each schedule for all 32 teams will be split into the most difficult games (1-8) and the easiest games (9-17). Here are the New York Giants most difficult games on their 2022 schedule…
READ MORE: Giants Easiest Games
Most Difficult Games on 2022 New York Giants Schedule
#1: Week 3 vs Dallas Cowboys
In theory, any game against the Dallas Cowboys will be considered a difficult contest to win. However, the Giants have added blue-chip rookies to the roster, but this primetime affair will be the first in their professional careers. The G-Men must answer the question if the spotlight is too bright for their inexperienced roster. If the Giants are going to win the game, the defense must keep Dak Prescott’s pass completion rate under 50 percent. Plus, limit the scoring opportunities for the Cowboys offense.
#2: Week 1 @ Tennessee Titans
In most cases, the first game of a new coaching tenure would be a team’s most difficult game of the season. But facing your fiercest divisional rival in a primetime matchup moves that game up the difficulty ladder. However, playing a season-opener against the two-time AFC South Division champs (Tennessee Titans) is no small task. During his time as Buffalo Bills offensive coordinator, Brian Daboll’s offense was able to crack and score touchdowns against the stingy Titans defense. From an offensive efficiency perspective, the Giants must learn to walk before they can run.
#3: Week 2 vs Carolina Panthers
The Giants will host the Carolina Panthers at MetLife Stadium for the second consecutive year. The G-Men played their best game of last season and outclassed the Panthers in a 25-3 Week 7 victory. Home-openers are impossible games to judge on the difficulty level. This Week 2 matchup is the Giants best shot for a win in the first four weeks of the 2022 season. The G-Men cannot head into Monday Night Football against the Cowboys with an 0-2 record. It could escalate to a winless September with fans’ expectations remaining low all season long.
#4: Week 18 @ Philadelphia Eagles
The Philadelphia Eagles could be the prohibitive favorite to win the NFC East division. Thus, a Week 18 road matchup against a team gearing for a long postseason run could be difficult for an inexperienced Giants team. If the Eagles achieve their lofty goal, Jalen Hurts will need to have an outstanding passing season. The addition of A.J. Brown to the receiving corps should make life much easier for Hurts. This contest will be two ships heading on different courses. The Giants are a young, hungry team looking to make a name for themself. The Eagles are a veteran team that has eyes on playing in another Super Bowl. A victory in the home season finale could springboard them to success.
#5: Week 8 @ Seattle Seahawks
The 2022 Seattle Seahawks will look quite different as Russell Wilson and Bobby Wagner are no longer with the franchise. Expectations might be low as the Seahawks are in the early stages of a rebuild. Still, the Giants are facing an uphill climb in this Week 8 matchup. Sometimes, young football teams get rattled playing in an environment like Lumen Field (home of the Seahawks) for the first time. The atmosphere is loud and disruptive for all four quarters, which leads to missed play calls and false starts for the opposition. Both teams might come up short in the playoff chase, but each plays a style of defense that should keep the game a low-scoring affair.
#6: Week 6 vs Baltimore Ravens
Heading into the Week 6 home game against the Baltimore Ravens, the Giants might be running on fumes after returning home from London. Customary, NFL teams take their bye week following playing in an overseas contest. Instead, the Giants will take their bye week in Week 9 after playing consecutive road games. Thus, the G-Men will have a short week to prepare for the Ravens following their return from the UK. All of these factors would make this game unwinnable from the Giants perspective. The lone consolation is the game will be played at MetLife Stadium.
#7: Week 5 vs Green Bay Packers [International Series in London]
The NFL is going global with five regular-season games played on three foreign soil sites in 2022. Mexico and Germany will host a game and the UK will be the site for the remaining three games this season. The highlight contest will be a Week 5 matchup between the Giants and Green Bay Packers in London’s Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. For the G-Men, it will be their third trip across the pond (victories over the Miami Dolphins in 2007 and St. Louis Rams in 2016). Fans can gauge the progress of the Giants rebuild with the outcome of this game. The Packers are a legitimate Super Bowl contender. To win, the Giants defense must limit the amount of big-play scoring opportunities for Aaron Rodgers and the Packers offense.
#8: Week 4 vs Chicago Bears
Long-time Giants fans will feel nostalgic with a Week 4 early-season matchup between the Chicago Bears and the G-Men at MetLife Stadium. The league’s popularity was built on rivalries like the Giants and Bears. In 62 all-time meetings (including playoffs, the Bears lead the series 36-24-2. For the fifth consecutive season, the two rivals will meet in 2022. The Giants have gone 1-3 in the previous four meetings. Their lone victory came in 2018, a 30-27 OT home win.
This year’s matchup will be tough as the Bears are banking on a partnership between their new head coach (Matt Eberflus) and young quarterback (Justin Fields). Together, they hope to lead the franchise back to the playoffs. Fields will be a good challenge for the Giants defense. The young pass-rushers must put constant pressure on Fields, who he can make plays with his wheels if flushed out of the pocket, Still, it will be difficult for the Giants to break the streak of losing close games to the Bears.
Main Photo: Embed from Getty Images
