Jan 4, 2026; East Rutherford, New Jersey, USA; New York Giants quarterback Jaxson Dart (6) throws a pass during the second quarter against the Dallas Cowboys at MetLife Stadium. Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images

Revealing Stat Suggests NY Giants Should Have Won More Than 4 Games in 2025

Originally posted on New York Giants on SI
By Patricia Traina | Last updated Mar 25, 2026 4:00 PM ET

The New York Giants only managed to win four games last season, but a very revealing stat suggests they should have won far more if only they had been able to get a complete football game from all three phases of the ball each week.

The stat, as revealed by Warren Sharp of Sharp Football, shows that the Giants played 377 offensive snaps with a lead, putting them 17th in the league in that category.

Those 377 offensive snaps with the lead are more than the Baltimore Ravens (364, ranked 18th) and were the second-best in the NFC East, behind the Philadelphia Eagles (471, ranked sixth).

The Giants' offense, despite losing top receiver Malik Nabers and running back Cam Skattebo to season-ending injuries, looked very promising once the team switched to quarterback Jaxson Dart under center.

The defense was a huge disappointment

New York scored 381 points last year during regular-season play, 17th in the league. But again, their defense didn’t quite hold up its end of the bargain, allowing 439 points to opponents, which was the seventh most in the league.

The Giants' defense famously blew five double-digit leads carried into the fourth quarter, including:

Week 2 @ Dallas: Led 13-3, lost 40-37
Week 5 @ New Orleans: Led 14-3, lost 26-14
Week 7 @ Denver: Led 26-8, lost 33-32
Week 10 @ Chicago: Led 20-10, lost 24-20
Week 11 vs. Detroit: Led in the 4th quarter, lost 34-27 in OT

Defensive coordinator Shane Bowen was fired following the fifth blown late-game lead, replaced by outside linebackers coach Charlie Bullen, when the Giants had a 2-10 record. Then-interim head coach Mike Kafka decided to make the long-overdue change.

The defense’s inability to hold leads came to a point differential margin of -58, the 11th-worst mark in the league. Had the defense been able to hold those leads, the Giants would have finished with a much better-looking 9-8 record and may have even been on the outskirts of a Wild Card berth.

Not surprisingly, the New England Patriots and Seattle Seahawks, the two Super Bowl teams, ranked first and second, suggesting that postseason snaps were also factored into the rankings.

Meanwhile, at the bottom of the chain were the New York Jets (66), the New Orleans Saints (126), the Las Vegas Raiders (140), and the Tennessee Titans (156).

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This article first appeared on New York Giants on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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