Normally, beating Dak Prescott and the annoying Dallas Cowboys would have New York Giants fans flooding the streets. But Sunday’s 34-17 win came with more than just victory over a hated division rival -- it officially killed any chance/hope/dream at landing the No. 1 pick in the 2026 Draft.
So definitely no parades this time.
It's been a long time since the G-Men have beaten Dallas, and even longer since they’ve done it with Prescott under center. After losing his first two career starts to Big Blue, the Mississippi State product rattled off 14 straight wins against them. And now that clock resets.
While finally ending the cruel reign of terror that is Prescott and the Cowboys is inherently good, winning a meaningless game and potentially falling out of the top five in the upcoming draft is exactly the kind of scenario a 4-13 team didn’t need.
Giants’ Week 18 win over Cowboys officially ends No. 1 pick hopes
No team trips over itself quite like the Giants. This marks the third straight year where a late-season, meaningless win has wrecked their draft odds and made the offseason even harder to navigate.
Holding a top-two pick in the 2026 Draft is almost a must if the Giants want to bait a quarterback-needy team into trading the farm for Indiana’s Fernando Mendoza or Oregon’s Dante Moore. Teams aren’t lining up to jump for the third through seventh picks unless there’s a can’t-miss pass-rusher (Ohio State's Arvell Reese), wide receiver (OSU's Carnell Tate or Arizona State's Jordyn Tyson), or star pass-protector (Miami's Francis Mauigoa or Utah's Spencer Fano) staring them in the face.
Related: Giants’ updated draft pick creates sneaky opportunities worth watching
Heading into Sunday, Big Blue held the No. 2 pick, with a shot to jump to No. 1 if they lost and the Raiders pulled off a win. But a win of their own, combined with some bad luck from the Browns, Jets, Cardinals, Commanders, and Titans, could’ve dropped them all the way to seventh.
Toppling the Cowboys after nine straight losses and ending Dak Prescott’s completely ridiculous 14-0 run against NY should’ve been a moment this franchise hung its hat on... something fans could finally celebrate. Instead, it’ll be chalked up as a mistimed win that torpedoed their best shot at reshaping the roster in April.
Truly great stuff, guys. Way to save the winning until the worst possible times. Classic.