The New York Giants ushered in the Mike Kafka era seeking a midseason refresh within the organization and to some degree that was present, with the lone exception being the final result on the scoreboard of their latest game.
The status quo came in the Giants’ 27-20 loss to the Green Bay Packers at MetLife Stadium in Week 11. It was the first contest where Kafka would have full reins on the team’s gameplan and there were certainly some positives to extract from his first foray as an NFL head coach, but ultimately the familiar ending is what took the spotlight on Sunday.
It was also the first game where New York would pass the quarterback baton to Jameis Winston, who had been serving as the third string gunslinger for the entire first ten weeks of the season.
This move came after Jaxson Dart was sidelined in the concussion protocol and Russell Wilson shifted into the backup role after another dismal showing in the fourth quarter of the Giants’ loss to the Chicago Bears the week before.
Like many of the Giants’ recent matchups, Winston and company started the game off strong with a free flowing nine play drive that spanned 65 yards and cashed in a touchdown to put the home team ahead by seven points in the opening minutes.
As the game progressed, points became more of a premium, especially with the windy weather conditions taking away the element of tacking on extra numbers in the field goal realm.
The Giants and Packers exchanged a few more touchdown drives until it was the Giants who needed one more push downfield to either tie up the affair or go for the win in the waning minutes of the fourth quarter.
With this year’s Giants team, one is always waiting for the rug to be pulled out from underneath their feet and that’s exactly what happened on their final possession.
Despite being pretty solid with their aggressive gambles throughout the day, it was Winston’s last daring attempt to throw for the endzone that would backfire, his pass intended for Jaylin Hyatt soaring past Hyatt's head and into the hands of Green Bay for the decisive interception.
Not to mention the Giants defense didn’t hold up their end of the bargain for another week, giving the Packers an average of 5.6 yards on the ground and 12.0 in the air that helped them create two drives of at least six plays and 65 yards in the second half to power their ascension into the lead.
So, the Giants have now fallen to 2-9 and it seems like most people on the outside have come to grips with the type of franchise that they are right now, including Connor Orr of SI.com who still hasn’t been swayed to move them anywhere in his latest MMQB NFL power rankings ahead of Week 12.
Orr, who didn’t even say much about the Giants’ recent performance, kept them in the No. 27 spot for the third straight rendition of his league order.
New York Giants wide receiver Jaylin Hyatt
New York Giants wide receiver Jalin Hyatt (13) celebrates after making a catch in a game against the Green Bay Packers at MetLife Stadium, Nov 16, 2025, East Rutherford, NJ, USA. / Yannick Peterhans / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
“I am averse to most every Manning Charm Spell out there,” Orr said. “But my God, when they had personal hero Guy Fieri on Monday Night Football to talk about Cam Skattebo’s take on how to eat a taco, my heart grew three sizes.”
Orr’s analysis may seem peculiar, but it lines up well with the reality that the Giants organization has been making more headlines from the off-field activities of their players than their efforts to improve their record on the gridiron.
In the days following the switch at head coach and the loss to Green Bay, there have been major stories in the New York market about members of their locker room who the franchise has been hoping will become key to the upward trajectory of their long-term future.
The first was the reports about rookie outside linebacker Abdul Carter sleeping through a mandatory walkthrough period of the Giants’ practices leading up to Sunday, an instance the defender claimed was an “honest mistake” after it led him to be held out of the first defensive series under Kafka’s decision.
There was also the public appearance of running back Cam Skattebo, who has been recovering from a season-ending ankle injury he sustained in Week 8 against the Philadelphia Eagles, engaging in controlled yet physical skit at a WWE event at Madison Square Garden on Monday.
In Carter’s case, the fallout has been amplified by the fact that the No. 3 pick hasn't been producing exactly at the level that many people thought he would in the Giants’ hefty defensive front.
Carter was an elite edge rusher that led the college level with 12.0 sacks last year, but only holds .5 sacks in his first 11 games despite being second on the team in total pressures.
Still, the outside linebacker isn’t alone, as many of his teammates who were also high draft selections during the Joe Schoen general manager era haven’t played anywhere near up to par with their potential coming out of school.
That includes Hyatt, who made a couple good catches on Sunday but has yet to be an influence in the endzone in three years in East Rutherford.
On the defensive side, cornerback Deonte Banks, who ranks second worst in the secondary in coverage grade and has been one of the most penalized players, has also been drawing weekly ire from fans as his effort has been an issue and he was torched once again for a touchdown that made a difference for the Packers in the end.
The main reason why the Giants fired Brian Daboll was their brass’s belief that the roster that Schoen assembled was talented enough to compete and win games with the right direction from the coaching staff.
After making a change hoping to reinvigorate the group, it’s been the same result in the right column as the Giants are coming dangerously close to not matching their three win total from 2024.
If these trends continue and the Giants don’t find a way to steal a couple victories before the campaign is over, it could become hard to maintain that narrative that the personnel choices aren’t failing and that would inherently make Schoen’s unstable seat hotter as the attention turns towards the offseason.
The Giants have six games left to prove that they have even a partial roster structure in place to roll into 2026 with some additional improvements, or there could be a massive rest waiting in the winds.
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