The New York Giants have a 2-11 record during the 2025 NFL season. They rightfully fired head coach Brian Daboll, and interim head coach Mike Kafka fired defensive coordinator Shane Bowen. It seems like things have been a trainwreck in New York this year, and on the one hand, that is true.
But on the other hand, the Giants have the most promising future of any team currently near the top of the draft board. Most importantly, the Big Blue has its quarterback of the future in place with Jaxson Dart, who looks every bit like a franchise guy if he can just stop taking big hits.
New York also has an elite defensive line and solid pieces in the secondary, as well as a tandem of young running backs in Cam Skattebo and Tyrone Tracy who can wreak havoc and a top-flight pass-catcher in Malik Nabers. Tight end Theo Johnson is also an enticing piece, so the future is bright.
This Giants stat is equal parts promising and demoralizing
However, this Giants team hasn't been that far off, even this year. Obviously, they crumbled in several games by relinquishing big leads, and that led to Daboll's demise. But this is more than just an anecdotal point, as this stat shows how close New York is to being a relevant NFL franchise again.
Former NFL Network host and currently of Sumer Sports, Lindsay Rhodes reported that the Giants have had more offensive plays while leading this year than the 8-5 Detroit Lions. They also have more than the 10-2 Denver Broncos and the 8-4 Buffalo Bills.
All told, the Giants currently rank 11th in the league in the number of offensive plays they have had while leading. That is a staggering stat and paints a picture of a New York team that simply needs better coaching to stop blowing massive leads and hold on when they're ahead.
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The most brutal example of this came in Week 7, as the Giants gave up 33 fourth-quarter points to the Broncos and lost 33-32. They also let the Dallas Cowboys get in field goal range to tie the game up with just 27 seconds left in Week 2.
They led by two scores with about six minutes left against the Chicago Bears in Week 10, and they lost that game as well. New York was also leading the Detroit Lions in Week 12 before giving up 17 points in the fourth quarter and overtime to eventually lose. You get the picture.
Kafka is unlikely to be the long-term solution for the Giants, so the Mara family needs to knock their head coach hiring out of the park this offseason. The team clearly has the talent to compete with the best teams in the NFL, but they just haven't had the infrastructure to pull out wins. But they're close, and this stat proves it.