Did Giants Lose Ground Despite Winning Offseason?

The New York Giants came away from the player-acquisition stage of the NFL offseason as winners, at least according to the consensus. They improved at the sport’s most important position, added a blue-chip prospect, signed two new starters in the secondary, and will go into 2025 as an improved unit.

Unfortunately for the Giants, just about every team feels similarly.

Wednesday’s schedule release reminded fans of such a reality. The NFC East grew stronger in the spring. The Las Vegas Raiders, Chicago Bears, New Orleans Saints, and New England Patriots are under new management.

New York is unequivocally improved. Upgrading from Daniel Jones to Russell Wilson makes that obvious enough. And yet, Bleacher Report listed the Giants among the worst rosters in the NFL, despite “winning” the offseason.

“After ranking 24th in total defense last season, the Giants should be respectable on defense in 2025,” Kristopher Knox wrote. “They also have some capable offensive weapons like Nabers, Skattebo, and Tyrone Tracy Jr.

“The problem is that Dart isn't viewed as a pro-ready prospect, and the veteran quarterback duo of Jameis Winston and Russell Wilson leaves plenty to be desired. Winston remains turnover-prone, while Wilson floundered down the stretch for the Pittsburgh Steelers last season.

“The Giants may be better than they were during last year's 3-14 season, but they can't expect monumental improvements with a marginal quarterback room.”

To an extent, Knox is correct. It’s hard to find six wins with such a tough schedule ahead. They won’t have the advantage under center in the vast majority of games. And if they are finishing with a top-10 pick in the 2026 NFL Draft, the reality is they can’t be too far from the league’s worst roster.

With that said, New York has two blue-chip talents on defense in defensive tackle Dexter Lawrence and edge rusher Abdul Carter. Left tackle Andrew Thomas is a star when healthy and receiver Malik Nabers was the best receiver in a stacked class. There are a handful of quality starters complementing them, and while there are certainly holes and spots without much upside, there are several other teams with similar (or less) talent.

The Tennessee Titans, New Orleans Saints, and Cleveland Browns were listed ahead of the Giants, with the Carolina Panthers trailing. The Raiders have little outside Geno Smith, tight end Brock Bowers, running back Ashton Jeanty, and edge rusher Maxx Crosby. The Indianapolis Colts are mired in mediocrity with a less stable quarterback room. The Cleveland Browns earned the second pick and barely upgraded under center.

Maybe New York proves to be better than those ill-fated squads. Perhaps Knox is right and Wilson doesn’t elevate the Giants much at all.

The problem is that they are still in the conversation, even after four Joe Schoen-led offseasons. If 2025 ends in a similar fashion to 2024, he may not get the chance to rectify this roster’s flaws.