NFL Power Rankings: Are Giants Stuck in Limbo?

Are better days ahead for the New York Giants?

While that’s the hope and expectation of those around the team, Pro Football Focus doesn’t sound quite as convinced.

The popular analytics website recently released its power rankings ahead of the 2023 season, ranking all 32 teams and putting them into groups. And sitting in the “Stuck in Limbo” category are the 26th ranked Giants, of whom author Sam Monson notes:

The biggest additions the Giants made were at general manager and head coach, and Brian Daboll, in particular, could have a real impact on Daniel Jones at quarterback. Jones was a top-five graded quarterback in the league through the first month of the season in 2021 before the wheels fell off as the offense disintegrated around him. The Giants did what they could on the offensive line, and the receiving corps staying healthy would be a big boost for the team overall. The Giants offense could be a surprise unit in 2022.

Placing the Giants in the “Stuck in Limbo” category is certainly fair considering they need to see how well quarterback Daniel Jones takes to the new offensive system, but are the Giants really deserving of a ranking below the Lions (No. 24) and Jets (No. 25)?

Check out our 90-man roster player profiles ahead of training camp.

Perhaps that’s because the Giants have a brand new coaching staff and while there is hope that the team finally got that aspect of its operation right, people just don't want to be fooled again by all the off-season optimism and feel-good reports that came out of East Rutherford this spring.

By PFF’s own admission, quarterback Daniel Jones got off to a strong start last season before the offense’s massive meltdown brought on in part by injuries and in part by a scheme that never quite fit the strength of those players that were available.

And if the new offensive system designed by head coach Brian Daboll and offensive coordinator Mike Kafka can produce even a fraction of the Bills' success with quarterback Josh Allen, that alone would be a big win for the Giants.

But it also needs to be noted that optimism brought about by a new coaching staff is nothing new. Ben McAdoo, Pat Shurmur, and Joe Judge generated all kinds of optimism that got people excited or, at the very least, cautiously optimistic that better days were ahead.

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Of course, we all know how those stories turned out, which is why there is likely still some trepidation with Daboll and the direction of a franchise that, for most of the last decade, hasn't been very good.

Power rankings are purely for entertainment and carry no value other than to see what others think about the teams in the league—kind of like a sports fan with multiple rooting interests trying to prioritize their favorite team, second favorite team, and so on forth.

In this case, Monson nails it by putting the Giants in the “Stuck In Limbo” category instead of the next lowest tier, “Rebuilding.” As for the ranking itself, that’s a matter of opinion that will change in a snap if the Giants’ expectations for the team come to fruition over the next few months.

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