Where Does SI.com Slot the Giants in this Week's NFL Power Rankings?

When an NFL season isn’t going as you hoped it would, sometimes you have to think a little outside the box and look for ways to make it more bearable.

So in trying to find a different perspective, I took a look at SI.com’s MMQB weekly NFL power rankings to see where they had the Giants sitting and why.

While I was not surprised to see that the voting panel had the 2-6 Giants hovering at the bottom of the league (27th), I was surprised to see that the Giants actually rose one spot in the voting from 28, the week prior, explained as follows:

Frustrating loss for the G-men, who played well but couldn’t hang with Matthew Stafford in the second half. Daniel Jones (28-of-41, 322 yards, 4 TDs, 124.2 rating) continues to make Dave Gettleman look good.

Daniel Jones certainly has been a bright spot for the Giants, and although he’s still learning the nuances of the pro game, he appears to have a very bright future ahead of him.

But that defense—after eight games that Giants defense doesn’t have an identity that remotely resembles the “aggressive, attacking” style for which defensive coordinator James Bettcher is known. The Giants have probably made more personnel tweaks to that side of the ball than they have the offense.

In Week 1 against the Cowboys, the Giants starting defense included inside linebacker Tae Davis and cornerback Antonio Hamilton on the starting lineup.

Davis has since been cut and was claimed Wednesday by the Cleveland Browns. And Hamilton, who rotated with DeAndre Baker, has been put back on special teams full-time where he’s made a consistent contribution.

For this next game, also against the Cowboys, but on Monday night, the Giants' defense will have a much different look, both on the starting front and in the reserves.

Baker is now the full-time starter ahead of Hamilton. Deone Bucannon, signed to the team last week, could end up starting at inside linebacker alongside Alec Ogletree.

Also, the Giants have since added defensive lineman Leonard Williams, who could see more than a smattering of snaps next to Dexter Lawrence.

Whether all these new faces will do better than the Week 1 group that allowed 494 yards on offense to the Cowboys in a 35-17 loss remains to be seen.

And speaking of being seen, check out how the rest of the league was ranked by the MMQB team.

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