The Giants' Offseason Haul Makes Them More Than Just a 'Most Improved' Candidate

Another season at the bottom of the NFC East is unacceptable for the New York Giants. Head coach John Harbaugh knows this, as he has even set the expectation of reaching the playoffs in his first year at the helm.

ESPN analyst Bill Barnwell is buying into a bounce-back campaign for Big Blue. He included the Giants in a list of five NFL teams most likely to improve in 2026.

"The Giants hope that John Harbaugh will offer much-needed stability for a franchise that made the longtime Ravens coach its fifth head coaching hire in 10 years after (Tom) Coughlin's tenure," Barnwell said.

New York's argument for a major step forward in 2026 goes far beyond Harbaugh's arrival. The roster is finally built to be truly competitive in the NFC after an active offseason.

Giants Can Do More Than 'Improve' John Harbaugh’s First Season

Aug 22, 2026; Miami Gardens, Florida, USA; New York Giants head coach John Harbaugh speaks to his players against the Miami Dolphins during the second half at Hard Rock Stadium. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

In retrospect, the 2025 Giants were set up to fail. Brian Daboll had one foot out the door, and rookie quarterback Jaxson Dart played 11 of his 12 games without a true top pass-catcher, as Malik Nabers suffered an ACL injury in Dart's first start.

On the other side of the ball, New York finished with the second-worst run defense in the NFL, allowing 145.3 yards per game on the ground.

It was a recipe for disaster.

Big Blue has addressed those weaknesses this offseason, taking pressure off of Dart and adding balance to the defensive roster.

The Giants bolstered Dart's weapons by signing Isaiah Likely, Darnell Mooney, Odell Beckham Jr., and Braxton Berrios, and by drafting Malachi Fields, giving the young quarterback a much deeper set of targets than they had in 2025.

On defense, the Giants have added two new starting linebackers in Tremaine Edmunds and Arvell Reese.

Edmunds notched a PFF run defense grade of 80.8 last season and has had at least 100 tackles in each of his eight NFL seasons. Reese has already been a terror in the preseason.

That combination at linebacker, along with the addition of D.J. Reader on the interior of the defensive line, has New York set up to be competent in run defense this season. If the pass defense can keep up its level of play, the defense won't drag the team down again.

The Giants won just four games last season. Improvement on that number should go without saying. With a dramatically improved roster and an experienced coaching staff, making the playoffs is a more reasonable goal.

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