5 Takeaways from the New York Giants’ Annual Town Hall Event

Joe Schoen, John Harbaugh and select players were on hand to share insights with Giants fans during the team's annual town hall event.

The New York Giants held their annual Town Hall event on Monday night in Manhattan. | Eric Hartline-Imagn Images

The New York Giants held their annual Town Hall event at New York’s Beacon Theater on Monday night.

The event offered fans an opportunity to gain exclusive insight from general manager Joe Schoen, head coach John Harbaugh, and a select group of players, including quarterback Jaxson Dart, running back Cam Skattebo, linebackers Brian Burns and Kayvon Thibodeaux, and members of their 2026 draft class.

The event also included legendary legacy players quarterback Phil Simms and linebacker Carl Banks, who were on hand as part of the team’s announcement regarding its plans to honor the 40th anniversary of the Giants’ Super Bowl XXI team, of which Simms and Banks were members.

Here are five takeaways from the event.  

Harbaugh is Bullish on Two Position Units

Overall, Harbaugh is pleased with the roster he and Schoen put together, but there are two position groups in particular that seem to have the head coach extra excited about: the tight ends and the cornerbacks.

Harbaugh said that the tight end room, which added former Raven Isaiah Likely, “has the potential to be the best in the league.”

That’s good news considering Harbaugh’s teams in past years have leaned heavily into 12-personnel packages (one running back, two tight ends).

And of the cornerbacks, where a competition is going to take place this summer to fill the vacancy created when Cor’Dale Flott left via free agency for the Titans, Harbaugh believes the group is underrated and “is going to play well this year.”

Forget About the Past

New York Giants head coach John Harbaugh is looking at the future and not the past. | Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

When it comes to division play, the Giants haven’t exactly been successful.  

Since 2020, Big Blue is 11-24-1 against NFC East teams, making it to the postseason just once, in 2022, after posting an ironic 1-4-1 division record.

That was their first postseason berth since 2016, when they went 4-2 in the division only to be bounced out in the Wild Card round by the Green Bay Packers.

As far as Harbaugh is concerned, what happened in the past during division play should stay there.

“All I care about,” he told the crowd, “is tomorrow’s practice.”  

A Good Omen?

Oct 26, 2025; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; New York Giants running back Cam Skattebo (44) against the Philadelphia Eagles at Lincoln Financial Field. | Eric Hartline-Imagn Images

Skattebo dropped a little info nugget that is sure to get Giants fans dreaming of far better days ahead: every team he’s ever been on has won a championship in his second season with them.

While one can’t discount the possibility of the Giants having the kind of turnaround that the Chicago Bears and New England Patriots had last season, there’s still a lot of work to be done to sort out what this roster is going to look like in its first season under Harbaugh.

Still, stranger things have been known to happen, so never say never.

Back to Defensive Basics

Former New York Giants defensive coordinator Wink Martindale | Eric Hartline-Imagn Images

Giants fans who lamented the bitter breakup between defensive coordinator Wink Martindale and the Giants after the 2023 season might be pleased to learn that the defense being installed by new defensive coordinator Dennard Wilson reminds outside linebacker Kayvon Thibodeaux of what Martindale ran, a statement that drew applause from the crowd.

Martindale’s defenses were known for being aggressive and attacking. That said, the unit never reached the top 10 during the two seasons he was in charge.

From 2022-2023, the Giants allowed the fourth-most yards per game to opponents (359.9), had the second-worst run defense (138.3 yards/game), and the 16th-worst pass defense (221.6 yards/game).

Martindale’s units were solid on third down, holding the fourth-lowest conversion allowed (36.1%).  

Wilson’s unit appears to have far better talent than what Martindale had, including a quartet of pass rushers in Arvell Reese, Thibodeaux, Burns, and Abdul Carter. He also has a plethora of defensive linemen he can rotate in and out, rather than relying solely on Dexter Lawrence, who is no longer with the team.

Honoring the Legends

Jan 25, 1987; Pasadena, CA, USA; FILE PHOTO; New York Giants tight end Mark Bavaro (89) during Super Bowl XXI against the Denver Broncos at the Rose Bowl. The Giants defeated the Broncos 39-20. | Manny Rubio-Imagn Images

As we reported three days ago, the Giants will be celebrating the 40th anniversary of their Super Bowl XXI championship team, the first of four Giants teams to bring home the Lombardi Trophy, in their Week 4 game against the Arizona Cardinals on October 4.

As part of the celebration of the Giants’ 39-20 win over the Denver Broncos, New York will be giving away a Mark Bavaro bobblehead doll.

Bavaro, who played tight end for the Giants from 1985 to 1990, caught a 13-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Phil Simms in the third quarter of that game, giving the Giants a 16-10 lead from which they never looked back.

Bavaro, who had four receptions for 51 yards  in that game, nearly had a second touchdown catch in that game as well when a 6-yard pass from Simms in the fourth quarter ricocheted off his hands and into the waiting arms of wide receiver Phil McConkey.

The  score gave the Giants a 33-10 lead.  

Sign up for our free newsletter and follow us on Facebook and X for the latest news, and send your mailbag questions to us.