The 2019 NFL schedule has been released and the football world is already planning which games they will be focusing on. The New York Giants (5-11 in 2018), who finished with a last place schedule, will face their three divisional opponents (Dallas, Philadelphia and Washington), the NFC North and the AFC East this season.
Here’s five much-watch games for Giants fans in the upcoming season.
Week 10: Giants at Jets
There’s a lot at stake in this one. More than normal. The Jets have a new head coach, new uniforms and a ton of new faces: running back Le’Veon Bell, linebacker C.J. Mosely and wide receiver Jamison Crowder just to name a few.
The Jets, who will be the home team in this game, will also have one of the top three defensive prospects (Alabama’s Quinnen Williams, Nick Bosa of Ohio State or Kentucky’s Josh Allen) in their lineup. The Giants, who select sixth, may also have a top defender to feature in this game. The backstories have been writing themselves for awhile.
Outside of the obvious co-tenant, intra-city rivalry, we will have the first regular season matchup between two celebrated first round draft picks from last season — Jets quarterback Sam Darnold and Giants running back Saquon Barkley. The Giants passed on Darnold with the second overall selection leaving him to the Jets, who had the third overall pick.
This will be Chapter One of what promises to be the great New York football argument for the next decade: Did the Giants make a mistake by passing on Darnold?
Week 7: Cardinals at Giants
Arizona has the first overall selection in this draft and if all the rumors are true, they will be selecting Oklahoma quarterback Kyler Murray, the Heisman Trophy winner. Regardless of the standings, this promises to be a well-attended game as fans flock to the swamp to get a live gander at the NFL’s latest phenomenon.
Other twists in this game are defensive coordinator James Bettcher facing off against his old team, as well as several other formal Cardinal players (safety Antoine Bethea, defensive ends Olsen Pierre and Kareem Martin and edge rusher Markus Golden).
The there is the ultimate plot twist that could come with the possible acquisition of second-year quarterback Josh Rosen by the Giants. That angle is currently in play should the Cards draft Murray. The Giants appear to have the most draft capital to offer Arizona should they seek to move Rosen. If a trade is to happen, it will likely come in the next week before or during the NFL Draft.
Week 6: Giants at Patriots
Always a big draw for many reasons. The Giants are the Patriots’ kryptonite and the one franchise that Bill Belichick might revere more than his own. That doesn’t preclude him from wanting to whip the Giants, but he’s been frustrated more often than not when facing his old employer.
Since taking over the Pats in 2000, Belichick has a 3-3 record in meaningful games versus Big Blue, with two of those three losses coming in the Super Bowl. Since the Pats won the first contest in 2003, 17-6, the games have all been very close. The margin of victory in the next five matchups has been by four points or less.
New England will be playing this season without future Hall of Fame tight end Rob Gronkowski (retired), but have added several new faces (Maurice Harris, Matt LaCosse, Michael Bennett, Austin Seferian-Jenkins and Demaryius Thomas). They also have six picks in the first three rounds of the upcoming draft, so they are going to be loaded again this season.
Week 5: Vikings at Giants
The Giants hired Pat Shurmur as their head coach last year based on his success as Minnesota’s offensive coordinator in 2017. He still has plenty of ties to his old club in the form of players and coaches. After the Giants hired Shurmur, they asked permission to interview Vikings quarterback coach Kevin Stefanski for the offensive coordinator job but were denied access. The Giants then hired Mike Shula. Stefanski has since been named the Vikings’ offensive coordinator.
The Giants will facing quarterback Kirk Cousins for the first time since he left Washington. Cousins has not fared very well against Big Blue. He has a 3-5 record against New York with eight touchdowns, 14 interceptions, 21 sacks and a 57% completion rating eight starts.
The Giants also be getting their first look at players such as wide receiver Adam Thielen and running back Dalvin Cook, and saying hello to old friends Linval Joseph and Brett Jones.
Week 17: Giants vs. Eagles
The NFC East has not had a repeat champion since 2004, when the Eagles won their third straight title. Since then, the Cowboys have won it five times, the Eagles four times, the Giants three times and Redskins twice.
If this trend holds true, last year’s champion (Dallas) will not repeat leaving the penthouse up for grabs. That doesn’t mean the Cowboys can’t win it, it’s just the going trend. It’s unlikely that the Redskins will challenge as they currently are unsettled at quarterback, so that leaves the Eagles and Giants.
That would involve a giant leap from the cellar by the Giants, who have gone just 8-24 the past two seasons. Going ‘worst to first’ is very common in the NFL, especially since they went to the four-team division format. This Week 17 game could be the make-or-break game for the division title, even if the Giants aren’t in line to win it.
