The Giants need to be better in 2026…but more efficient, too

Giants: Offense

That brings us to the Giants (all numbers to follow are from Pro Football Reference). On offense (middle point in the cluster of three above) they were middle of the pack but 20-30 points shy of what the league average would predict given the number of yards they gained (FYI, they were No. 17 in points scored while being No. 13 in yards gained). Some of that can be attributed to their kicking problems. The Giants led the NFL with 5 missed extra points, for an 87.8% XP success rate. (Eight teams did not miss an extra point all season.) Their field goal percentage of 88.5% was 11th in the NFL, but they only attempted 26 FGs, second lowest in the NFL. Their offensive problems went beyond that, though. Their 38.8% of drives ending in a score were 13th worst in the league. It wasn’t due to their rushing game. The Giants finished fifth in rushing yards and tied for fourth in rushing TDs. However, they were only 21st in passing yards and 24th in passing TDs while being 20th in pass attempts…and this with two quarterbacks who played well and a third who at least had one monster game. Looking at the graph at the top of this post, the Jacksonville Jaguars had only 66 more yards of offense than the Giants, but they scored 93 more points. The Jaguars also scored 8 more TDs. According to PFR’s advanced stats, Giants receivers’ drop rate was only 3.6%, one of the better rates in the league, their ADOT of 8.1 yards was fifth best, and their YAC were tied for ninth. They just didn’t get into the end zone often enough.

Giants: Defense

On defense, the Giants were one of the worst teams in the league in both yards and points surrendered…but amazingly they were a bit more efficient than the league trend would predict given the yardage they yielded. That jibes with the fact that despite 13 losses, they were only blown out twice, in Philadelphia and New England. Their MetLife co-tenant, the Jets, gave up almost as many yards but 64 more points. So many of the Giants’ losses were fourth quarter collapses that turned victories into defeats. The Giants’ 8.3% turnover rate was ninth worst in the NFL. Their 43.3% of drives ending in an opponent score was tied for seventh worst. Their 145.3 rushing yards yielded per game was second worst in the NFL, to no one’s surprise. Their 5.3 yards per rushing attempt was the league’s worst. Their 21 rushing TDs yielded was tied for fourth worst. The pass defense was not as bad, The Giants gave up 3642 passing yards, 16th in the NFL. Their 65.1% completion rate against was 18th. Their 24 passing TDs given up was tied with the Super Bowl Patriots and three other teams for 14th. Unfortunately their 1.6% interception rate was seventh worst. For a team whose pass rush was supposed to be ferocious, the Giants’ 39 sacks were only tied for 15th in the league, and their 96 QB hits were 16th.

The bottom line

For 2026, the Giants’ offense doesn’t need to get a lot better than what we saw in 2025. The 2025 team moved the ball well enough, it just didn’t score as much as it needed to. The kicking game can’t be worse than it’s been the past couple of years. A better running game would help, especially down near the goal line where the Giants had trouble getting that final yard and too often had to settle for field goals. The passing game doesn’t need to be dramatically better than it was last year, but with the loss of Wan’Dale Robinson and Malik Nabers coming off a second surgery a couple of the Giants’ new receivers are going to need to step up. The defense is really the big question. With the addition of D.J. Reader and Shelby Harris, plus Tremaine Edmunds and Arvell Reese at the second level, the run defense just has to be dramatically improved. (Doesn’t it? Right?) The pass rush may no longer come from the inside as often, but overall it has to start getting home more often. The big question is the secondary, but if even two of Colton Hood, Greg Newsome, Ar’Darius Washington, and Jason Pinnock can play well, it will make a significant difference. With the Cowboys and Rams (the two highest offensive yardage teams last year) up in the season’s first two weeks, the answer won’t be long in coming.