Dan Salomone: John Harbaugh came to the Giants after one of the most prolific head coaching tenures in NFL history, one that included 193 total victories, a Super Bowl title, 12 postseason appearances, and six AFC North championships. And it all started 18 years ago with a simple win over a divisional opponent at home.
Now he will look to do the same to begin a new era with the New York Football Giants.
The pursuit for the team's first postseason appearance since 2022 and first NFC East title since 2011 will begin right out of the gates with a visit from the rival Cowboys on Sunday Night Football.
Football is simple, but it isn't easy. Taking care of your business in the division is the tried-and-true method to reach the postseason.
And the Giants frankly haven't done that recently. They have gone 5-13 against NFC East opponents over the last three seasons (1-5 vs. Dallas and 2-4 vs. both Philadelphia and Washington).
So, for all the hoopla around where and when the 17 games fall on the recently-released schedule, put blinders on for those six rivalry games. Among those, the one I really have circled is Week 9 at Philadelphia. The Giants have not won there since 2013, a drought of 13 consecutive games including one postseason meeting, but Harbaugh will take his own streak into that meeting.
The Giants are on their bye the week before, and Harbaugh is 15-3 in games immediately following the break. He can turn – and has turned – the fortune of the Giants in a lot of respects, but doing so there would go a long way.
Meanwhile, the Giants have done all they can in terms of reshaping the roster to compete in the division. That includes simply getting bigger.
"I think we have a bunch of Giants, figuratively and literally," Harbaugh said after the draft. "We have guys that we really like that are going to make a difference. … Definitely a priority. It's important. You can be a Giant in different kind of ways. You can be real fast, and that makes you a fast Giant, I guess. We want really good players. We want guys that fit how we want to play, and some of these guys, they really fit how we want to play.
"The fact that they're bigger players, longer, heavy-handed type guys is important, because especially in this division, you've got to play that way. Your interior offensive line has to be physical. Look at the defensive tackles in this league. Right down the road especially."