Every NFL season has a turning point. For the 2025 New York Giants, it might arrive before we even hit Halloween. With a schedule that feels more like a punishment than a path to progress, Big Blue is staring down a brutal reality: if they don’t beat the New Orleans Saints in Week 5, this thing could unravel fast.
Listen, everyone starts the season 0-0 and no games are won on paper, but entering the season, this is an objectively difficult schedule.
The Giants open with four games that could chew up and spit out even the best rosters. Road games at Washington and Dallas to start, then a prime-time date with the Kansas City Chiefs in Week 3 and a home matchup against a stacked Los Angeles Chargers team in Week 4. That’s a buzzsaw. That’s survival mode. And that’s before even getting to the Philadelphia Eagles, San Francisco 49ers, or Detroit Lions.
Which brings us to New Orleans, Week 5, on the road, against a team that might be even more of a question mark than the Giants themselves. And because of that, it’s a game the Giants absolutely have to win.
New York Giants face early must-win game against Saints
Let’s not pretend the Saints are a stable franchise right now. Derek Carr retired out of nowhere. They’ve got a rookie head coach in Kellen Moore and a quarterback room full of dart throws—rookie Tyler Shough, Spencer Rattler, and Jake Haener. The defense is aging. The roster is retooling. It’s a rebuild in disguise, and the Giants need to take full advantage.
This is about getting in, grabbing a win, and getting out. Russell Wilson should have the upper hand against a potential rookie-led Saints team still figuring out who they even are. Head coach Brian Daboll has to scheme this one like it’s a playoff game. Control the ball, pound the run, simplify the reads, and use New Orleans’ inexperience against them.
If the G-Men walk out of the Superdome 0-5, things get really ugly really fast. The Eagles are waiting on a short week. Then it’s road games at Denver and Philly again. Then the 49ers. It’s a schedule that doesn’t let up during any stretch—and if they don’t take advantage of the soft spots, they’ll be buried before the bye.
Week 5 might not decide the season, but it sure could save it. No one likes throwing "must-win" out there early, but the Giants will likely need this one. Bad.