The New York Giants are coming off their bye week with 10 games remaining and continue to rank among the league’s surprises. Sitting at 4-2-1 and leading the NFC East, Big Blue heads on the road Sunday to face division rival Philadelphia Eagles in their third divisional contest of the season.
As the Giants look to build on their early NFC East lead, NFL analyst Brian Baldinger recently cautioned against underestimating them. When asked which team he thinks people are underrating, or which one could surge in the second half of the season, Baldinger offered this take on Big Blue.
“The other team right now, and it’s only based off really one game, but what the New York Giants did in Houston two weeks ago was really eye-opening, because we’ve never
seen J.J. McCarthy play like that. Maybe it’s one game, but that was in Houston against a good defence and he didn’t make a mistake, and they ran the ball really well," Baldinger said in a recent interview.
"I feel like the Giants, because they’re in the NFC East and they’ve got the Eagles and Commanders coming up, if they win those games and get to 6-2-1, they’re going to have a home playoff game. So I feel like we shouldn’t overlook the Giants.”
All four of the Giants’ wins this season have come against teams currently below .500. In fact, the only opponent they have faced with a .500 record is the Los Angeles Rams, who sit at 4-4.
The final 10 games will present genuine tests, including matchups against five teams that entered Week 9 with winning records: The Jacksonville Jaguars, San Francisco 49ers, reigning Super Bowl champion Seattle Seahawks, Cleveland Browns, and Detroit Lions.
The Giants are currently favored to win the NFC East and appear to be improving each week. The passing game has shown progress as Malik Nabers works his way closer to full health after returning from injury. Still, the biggest catalyst for the Giants’ success will be quarterback J.J. McCarthy, who has performed well through five quarters and will need to maintain that level of play.
Coaching has been a major factor in the Giants’ early success, and John Harbaugh continues to impress in his first season as head coach. There is a real chance the team’s strong coaching edge helps deliver an NFC East title and more.
To remain a legitimate threat in the NFC, however, the Giants will need to keep playing well over their final 10 games.
This article originally appeared on Giants Wire: Brian Baldinger warns not to overlook Giants in second half of season
