If there was one particular thing that stuck with the New York Giants last season, it was the number of fourth-quarter collapses.
The Giants blew five games last season when they were leading in the fourth quarter, including four games in which they held a double-digit lead at one point. Perhaps the most excruciating loss last year came in that infamous Mile High Miracle against the Denver Broncos, when New York had a 19-0 lead entering the fourth quarter, which was evaporated when Denver scored an improbable 33 points en route to a 33-32 win for the Broncos and a crushing loss for Big Blue.
That loss for the G-Men is also partly to blame for rookie kicker Jude McAtamney missing two extra points, which ultimately proved the deciding factor. Brian Daboll was eventually let go as the head coach.
Now with a new and proven winner as Big Blue's head coach in John Harbaugh, he knows very well that he can't let history repeat itself this upcoming season.
John Harbaugh knows very well in the need to close out games this season
Speaking with reporters at the annual NFL Meetings in Phoenix on Monday, Harbaugh was asked about coaching a team all the way to the finish to avoid any fourth-quarter downfalls like we saw last season with the Giants:
"You've got to build a team that has what it takes to find a way to make plays in the fourth quarter," Harbaugh said.
If it weren't for all of those fourth-quarter collapses last season, perhaps we wouldn't be in this exact spot right now, and Harbaugh might not be the new head coach for the Giants right now. But the fact of the matter is, Harbaugh is here and was brought into the building to change the narrative for a franchise that has been losing for quite a while.
The Giants have a lot of talent on their roster to be a great team in 2026 and beyond with a Super Bowl-winning head coach, John Harbaugh, at the helm. They now have to piece it all together and learn to finish games out this upcoming season, avoiding those fourth-quarter downfalls that we saw so much of last year.