Given a perfect opportunity to string two wins in a row against an are-we-sure-they’re-not-good Arizona Cardinals team, the New York Giants came back from a 14-3 first-quarter deficit to come away with an anxiety-induced 36-to-24 Week 4 win (thank you, Deonte Banks, for the game-sealing 98-yard pick-six).
Coming into the matchup against the Cards, the Giants didn’t exactly have a quiet week.
An MRI confirmed star pass rusher Brian Burns will be out for the season with a torn ACL after suffering the injury in Week 3. The following day, the Giants released nostalgia-play wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. after he had exactly one target and zero catches in his first three games back in a Giants uniform. And then the day after that, the G-Men swung a trade for Minnesota Vikings quarterback J.J. McCarthy. So yeah, it’s been a week.
Who said distractions were a bad thing? The win puts the Giants at an impressive 3-1, marking the first time they’ve started this hot since 2022, which was also the last time they made the playoffs. There’s still a ridiculous amount of football left, but considering everything that’s already gone wrong through four weeks (starting QB Jaxson Dart is out for the year as well), you’ll take 3-1 every single time.
Here are five things that immediately stood out from Big Blue’s Week 4 win.
5 (and a half) takeaways from Giants’ Week 4 win over Cardinals
Half a reaction: Penalties and turnovers are the devil
The Giants didn’t make it easy on themselves. That’s for sure. Three turnovers and five penalties for 27 yards kept this game way closer than it ever needed to be.
But where’s the fun in making things easy? ...Right?
Arvell Reese might be the answer to the Giants' lackluster pass rush sans Brian Burns
Consider this the Arvell Reese game.
DC Dennard Wilson didn’t send Reese after the quarterback often, but when he did, the rookie linebacker delivered. Early in the second quarter, Reese flew in on a blitz and smacked Jacoby Brissett’s arm, altering the throw and giving cornerback Greg Newsome about as big a “gimmie” interception as you’ll find.
Later in the game, Wilson sent Reese on a delayed blitz where he blew past Hjalte Froholdt to get to Brissett. After beating Froholdt clean, Reese practically smacked the football out of Brissett’s hand as he was releasing it.
With Burns out for the year and an anemic pass rush looking for some life (where in the world are Abdul Carter and Kayvon Thibodeaux?), turning their 6-foot-4, 243-pound defensive demon loose might be the move.
The G-Men were able to get Cardinals quarterback Jake Brisket on the ground twice, with Tremaine Edmunds and C.J. Okoye picking up the sacks, which was nice to see after they had only one through the first three games. If Reese keeps creating havoc as an extra rusher, maybe this pass-rush unit has a little more life in it than we thought.
Arvell Reese is a nightmare (in a good way)
The 21-year-old played so nice, I had to mention him twice. It felt like the broadcast booth was saying Reese’s name every other play, and for good reason. The former Ohio State star finished the game with seven tackles, one tackle for loss, and three(!) passes defensed. Oh, and he added his first career interception to boot.
For our Ted Lasso fans out there, Reese was doing his best Roy Kent impression: He’s here, he’s there. He’s every-[NSFW]-where. Arvell Reese, Arvell Reese!
Arvell Reese > Jeremiyah Love
Why not? You know what they say: third time’s the charm. But rather than focus on the box score and his impact again, I feel the itch to unnecessarily compare Reese to Jeremiyah Love, whom the Cardinals drafted third overall -- two spots ahead of Reese.
The G-Men were rumored to be very interested in Love throughout the pre-draft process. Harbs hasn’t seen an elite ground game he didn’t like, but Arizona made sure the former Notre Dame star wouldn’t be available when New York was on the clock.
Maybe that turned out to be for the best, because Reese is making a case that he should’ve been the first defender off the board.
It’s not that Love had a bad game by any means (63 rushing yards on 14 carries). Reese was just considerably more impactful, looking every bit like a Defensive Rookie of the Year frontrunner on Sunday. After breaking out against Tennessee last week and following it up with another monster performance against Arizona, the Giants might’ve stumbled into something special with the No. 5 pick.
Jameis Winston is an acquired taste
Talk about the good, the bad, and the Jameis.
It certainly takes a special person to willingly ride the Jameis Winston rollercoaster every Sunday, so call John Harbaugh an adrenaline junky, I guess. The Famous Jameis experience was in full effect against Arizona, with the 32-year-old completing 18 of 29 passes for 250 yards, three touchdowns, and two interceptions.
One drive, he’d roll out and throw an absolute dime -- putting the ball where only his receiver could get it for a touchdown -- and the next, he’d throw back-to-back back-breaking interceptions, frustratingly keeping the Cards in the game. As I said, he’s an acquired taste.
Fortunately, Winston did enough to come away with the win, which is really all you can ask of your backup quarterback. As long as Big Blue keeps winning, Harbaugh won’t have much reason to make a change, but McCarthy’s presence behind him certainly makes the bad parts of the Jameis experience a little more interesting.
Feed Malik Nabers. He's hungry
Welcome to the 2026 season, Malik Nabers.
After suffering a season-ending ACL injury last year, the 23-year-old superstar understandably got off to a slower start than Giants fans are used to seeing. If Sunday was any indication, Leek is getting awfully close to looking like himself again, and it couldn’t come at a better time.
Tight end Isaiah Likely might be a high-level security blanket. Running back Cam Skattebo might be a short-yardage sledgehammer. But Nabers is the one player New York has who can completely flip a game whenever the football gets into his hands.
Leek finished with six catches for 112 yards while also snagging his first touchdown reception of the season. With Dart out and Winston bringing his usual week-to-week adventure under center, getting the ball into Nabers’ hands as often as possible feels like a pretty good way to make everyone’s life easier.
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