NY Giants Land in Encouraging Tier in Way Too Early Ranking

The New York Giants had the tools to be a competitive football team last season, but they lacked the leadership, discipline, coaching ingenuity, and killer instinct needed to win more than four games. When a deeply flawed yet fairly promising team experiences drastic changes, rapid growth can occur.

Just last year, the New England Patriots were mired in ineptitude—then, they played in the Super Bowl. This demonstrates how quickly a struggling team can vault into playoff contention. Perhaps the Giants can follow that pattern. Nick Wright thinks they have a chance.

When revealing his "Way-Too Early Tiers" for the 2026 campaign, the Fox Sports 1 personality grouped Big Blue with the New Orleans Saints, Tennessee Titans, Pittsburgh Steelers, Minnesota Vikings, and Las Vegas Raiders in the "One Playoff Team?" section.

He sees one of these squads reaching the postseason. For New York, their new head coach is a major advantage going into the next season.

"The Giants are going to be a very trendy pick, and I get it," Wright said on First Things First. "The division seems maybe up for grabs, depending on what you think about Philly, and people like {John} Harbaugh."

The Giants are in the second tier from the bottom—fair, given their recent performance. Still, this analysis highlights the renewed optimism fans feel after the Harbaugh hire.

Can the NY Giants quickly ascend?

Bringing in a Super Bowl-winning head coach who has made the playoffs 66 percent of the time is a potentially franchise-reviving move. The Giants can completely change their identity under a credible and battle-tested leader.

Sustaining success will be the true measure of Harbaugh's impact, but New York has to take it one step at a time. A winning campaign and postseason berth are fine places to start.

The reason Harbaugh's arrival is particularly appealing is that the team already has a plethora of talent on both offense and defense. While upgrades are definitely needed in certain areas -- linebacker, cornerback, safety, and special teams-- New York has a solid base.

NY Giants QB Jaxson Dart celebrates with OLB Brian Burns — Jan 4, 2026; East Rutherford, New Jersey, USA; New York Giants linebacker Brian Burns (0) greets New York Giants quarterback Jaxson Dart (6) after the game against the Dallas Cowboys at MetLife Stadium. | Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images

Jaxson Dart showed promise as a rookie in tough conditions. Andrew Thomas led a much-improved offensive line before a December hamstring injury.

Brian Burns earned Second-Team All-Pro honors with a career-high 16.5 sacks. Cam Skattebo and Tyrone Tracy Jr. had standout stretches. Abdul Carter showed notable growth late in his rookie NFL season.

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If fans can look past the team's failures between those individual triumphs—which isn’t easy—they should feel hopeful about 2026.

Factor in a potentially rejuvenated Dexter Lawrence, a healthy Malik Nabers, and a more organized secondary, and the Giants could become the NFL's next rags-to-riches story.

Stay tuned.