The NY Giants haven’t made the NFL Playoffs since 2016, and appeared in the postseason just once since winning the Super Bowl following the 2011 campaign, but might that change?
The NY Giants’ have not been in the NFL Playoffs since the 2016 season, and it’s been a decade since New York’s last postseason win.
New York got in as a wildcard in 2016, but falling one game shy of the NFC East crown at 6-10 last season was the closest the Giants have come to the postseason, since.
In addition, the NY Giants have not won their division; the NFC East, since 2011 which was ten years ago.
Following a frenetic offseason, bolstering a young roster that just might have playoff caliber talent on both sides of the ball, this might be the year the NY Giants return to the postseason.
Here are five reasons the NY Giants’ will break the playoff drought this upcoming season.
1) General Manager Dave Gettleman went on a spree in free agency.
In this past free agency, Gettleman added players including wide receiver Kenny Golladay, cornerback Adoree’ Jackson, and right Kyle Rudolph, who all have the potential to make significant impacts in 2021.
Jackson joins the NY Giants already great secondary, giving plenty of reason to believe this defense as a whole will turn it up a notch. Adding players like Golladay and Rudolph gives quarterback Daniel Jones more toys to play with.
Most importantly, Jones also finally gets his WR1.
2) Saquon Barkley is back
Running back Saquon Barkley is going into his fourth season in the NFL, and has barely had playing time with his team due to injuries.
With Barkley back on the field, the sky’s the limit for this offense.
The NY Giants have added players to their offensive line which should open up more holes for Barkley to run. Also, adding offensive weapons will definitely take the load off of Barkley so he doesn’t risk yet another injury.
We can’t forget what he is capable of doing on the gridiron.
After an intense rehab, Barkley is bound to remind the league just how dominant he is.
3) Daniel Jones is the best deep-ball passer from 2020
Quarterback Daniel Jones went deep just 39 times last season, but was effective doing it.
After posting a CPOE of -4.9% in 2019, Jones took a huge leap in 2020 to +14.8%, an improvement of +19.7% points, the largest in the entire league from 2019 to 2020.
With weapons like Golladay, Sterling Shepard, Darius Slayton, Kadarius Toney, Evan Engram, and Rudolph, not to mention Barkley’s return, Jones will be throwing the ball down the field a lot this season, hopefully improving his deep-ball stat from 2020.
4) Patrick Graham and the NY Giants defense
The NY Giants’ defense last year was a huge reason why they went on a four-game win streak in which they held their opponents to 20 or fewer points, something they haven’t done in years past.
The NY Giants added Jackson in free agency to pair him up with James Bradberry, which will be a scary. They also retained Leonard Williams, who had a huge successful season last year.
Graham has proven to be one of the NFL’s more innovative defensive play callers, and the addition of Jackson should allow him to play more man-to-mean defense than in year’s past which could benefit the front-seven and the pass-rush as well.
For all of the NY Giants’ offensive firepower, a dominant defense might just pave the way for New York breaking tis postseason drought.
5) The NFC East is wide open
The NFC East containing the Giants, the Philadelphia Eagles, Dallas Cowboys, and Washington Football Team is something to watch every year.
There has not been a consecutive division winner in years, and the four teams combined went 23-40 last season.
The Giants were just shy of making the playoffs last season, making their playoff drought even longer. The Washington Football Team had one more win then them.
This upcoming season, the New York Giants’ can easily win the division if Jones cuts down the turnovers, and the defense routinely finds a way to get to the quarterbacks, this team should be in great shape for a playoff spot.