All of a sudden, the dysfunctional New York Giants have direction and more stability than they've had in years. After yet another head coaching failure, the Giants got serious about that spot and brought along John Harbaugh to right the ship.
Harbaugh is a Super Bowl-winning head coach and likely Hall of Famer when he's done in the NFL, and you figure that this tenure with the Giants will be his last spot as a coach in the league. While Harbaugh hasn't necessarily had a ton of playoff success in recent years with the Baltimore Ravens, he's a proven winner, and that lack of postseason success doesn't mean that happens with the Giants.
In fact, while it's still early, and while both free agency and the 2026 NFL Draft haven't yet hit, there are multiple reasons to believe that an NFC East title for the Giants is coming in the 2026 season.
The New York Giants path to an NFC East title in 2026 is clearer than you think
The most obvious reason is Harbaugh himself - he won over 61 percent of his regular-season games with the Ravens, including a 32-16 regular-season record across his first three seasons as the team's head coach. Not only did he find immediate success with the Ravens, but he ended up winning six AFC North titles during his 18-year tenure with the team.
Harbaugh understands how a division-winning team operates, so this wouldn't be uncharted territory for him. Secondly, the Giants have the quarterback in place. While it wasn't the most seamless rookie season, Jaxson Dart absolutely has the goods. His rookie campaign ended in 24 total touchdowns and a rock-solid 91.7 passer rating.
Not only was Dart showing off what appears to be an elite rushing ability, but he completed 63.7 percent of his passes, largely kept the ball out of harm's way, and was also able to push the ball down the field at a rate much higher than you'd expect from a rookie passer.
The odds of a second-year breakout for Dart are very high, especially with a proven head coach on board. On the defensive side of the ball, the Giants will again boast one of the more talented defensive lines in the league, and being strong in the trenches is where games in the NFL are won and lost.
Being able to carry that talent into 2026 with a solid defensive coordinator in Dennard Wilson does give New York a runway to finish with a top-12 defensive unit. Another huge piece of this potential division-winning puzzle is how the 2025 season ended up.
The Giants actually went just 1-7 in one-score games. This team continually failed to close opponents out, and much of that could be reversed with a proven head coach. As previously noted, Harbaugh has won 61.4 percent of his regular-season games in the NFL. That comes out to 10.43 games across a 17-game campaign.
It's not a stretch to think that the Giants could at least finish around .500 in one-score games in 2026, especially with the likelihood of the team fielding an improved roster, and a second year breakout from Dart.
The last reason to believe in an NFC East title for the Giants in 2026 is due to what the rest of the division is dealing with; the Washington Commanders have a below-average roster and won just five games in 2025, having to already make wholesale coaching changes.
The Dallas Cowboys currently have what could still be the worst defense in the NFL, and it's no guarantee that unit improves for 2026. Lastly, the Philadelphia Eagles have already found themselves in a bit of a mess, as they've had to hire yet another new offensive coordinator and could lose both Landon Dickerson and Lane Johnson to retirement this offseason.
As the 2026 offseason progresses, it'll become clearer that a Giants NFC East title is much more likely than you think.