We continue our assiduous, irrefutable breakdown of how the New York Giants stack up in the NFC East. The rigorously laborious subjective point-grading system was applied to the NFC East offenses, and here are the results:
Offensive breakdown
23 points: Eagles
13 points: Giants
12 points: Cowboys
12 points: Commanders
The Giants finished second behind the Philadelphia Eagles, who almost swept each position group. This, obviously, by no means suggests that the Giants offense will be more successful than the Commanders or the Cowboys. It’s a fun exercise we’ll now apply to the NFC East defenses.
Defensive line
4 points: Commanders
3 points: Eagles
2 points: Giants
1 point: Cowboys
I would propound that Dexter Lawrence is the best defensive lineman in the division; he’s arguably the best in the league. However, Jalen Carter isn’t too far behind. Carter has 125 pressures through two seasons and is still on his rookie contract, whereas Lawrence is earning $21.8 million per year. Jordan Davis is also on a rookie contract. He hasn’t dominated at the NFL level, but he’s a solid player in his own right. 23-year-old Moro Ojomo had 39 pressures in his second NFL season last year. He’ll look to assume a more significant role.
Howie Roseman also drafted Ty Robinson to replace Milton Williams, who signed with the New England Patriots. The Eagles are a bit thin up front behind Carter and Davis. They’ll be relying on young players such as Ojomo, Thomas Booker IV, Gabe Hall, and Byron Young to step up. I placed the Eagles slightly over the Giants, mostly due to the contracts of their top two guys and Carter's overall skill set, but the lack of depth is concerning.
The Giants, however, have a lot of options to rely on. Lawrence is one of the best in the NFL, rookie Darius Alexander is a quality asset who can eventually start, and Rakeem Nunez-Roches is a solid veteran option against the run. I appreciate that Joe Schoen added veteran options to compete with DJ Davidson and Jordon Riley; Roy Robertson-Harris and Jeremiah Ledbetter aren’t household names, but they have plenty of competent reps under their belt. The Giants need options to complement and rotate around Lawrence — they lacked that last season and defensive coordinator Shane Bowen was unable to run his system toward the end of the season.
Still, the Giants came in third because of Philadelphia and the Commanders, who I surprisingly ranked first (four points). I respect Daron Payne, but he’s no Dexter Lawrence or even Jalen Carter, yet he’s complemented by Johnny Newton, Deatrich Wise, and Sheldon Day. Eddie Goldman is also on the roster, but he’s struggled his last two seasons. Wise came over from New England and brings a level of physicality to the line as a 280-pounder who aligns as a 5-technique at times. Johnny Newton was injured through training camp and got a late start to the season — I remain high on his skill set. I’m not the biggest fan of Javon Kinlaw’s game but he’s another defensive line asset that was added through free agency. The combination of Payne, Wise, Newton, Day, Kinlaw, and Goldman is just deeper than what the Giants and Eagles have, so I gave the nod to Washington for four-points.
Dallas comes in last. Osa Odighizuwa is a very talented football player who was paid handsomely — an $80-million extension. Mazi Smith was a first-round pick in 2023, but it hasn’t exactly worked out. Dallas did sign Soloman Thomas and have several young pieces, but the overall depth is weaker than that of the other three teams in the division, so Dallas gets one point. Maybe someone will get upset and write a blog about it — I don’t know.
Edge
4 points: Giants
3 points: Cowboys
2 points: Eagles
1 point: Commanders
The Giants have an excellent trio of above-average starters: Brian Burns, Kayvon Thibodeaux, and rookie Abdul Carter. Carter still has much to prove, but he wasn’t the third overall pick in the draft for no reason. Micah Parsons is the best edge defender in the division, but the trio, plus Chauncey Golston, gave the Giants the slight edge over Dallas.
Parsons has solid options behind him as well, making the Cowboys a comfortable three-point earner. Dallas drafted Donovan Ezeiruaku with their second-round pick and brought Dante Fowler Jr. back to the team after his 50-pressure season with Washington in 2024. Marshawn Kneeland and Sam Williams are quality young assets with upside and different skill sets. Dallas has a good pass rush from the edge.
Philadelphia has an impressive rush with returning players Nolan Smith Jr., Bruce Huff, and Jalyx Hunt, as well as new faces such as ex-Giant Azeez Ojulari, Joshua Uche, and Antwaun Powell-Ryland Jr. Vic Fangio gets the most out of this talented group. However, they still only earn two points in this category. Washington was an easy 1-pointer in this exercise.
Linebacker
4 points: Eagles
3 points: Giants
2 points: Cowboys
1 point: Commanders
Zack Baun’s skill set was finally actualized under Fangio in 2024, and Roseman went out and added Alabama linebacker Jihaad Campbell in the first round of the draft. Campbell’s presence will allow Nakobe Dean to get healthy while the unit continues to be an asset. I gave the Giants three points due to the injury to DeMarvion Overshown and because I’m an OBVIOUS homer.
Bobby Okereke had a down year from last season. He was purportedly playing through an injury and adjusting to Bowen’s defense. Micah McFadden has taken steps in his development each year and now enters a contract season. They’re solid overall starters, but Okereke is one year removed from being discussed as one of the better linebackers in the league after his iron-man 149-tackle season under Wink Martindale.
The Giants also added several depth options behind Darius Muasau and Dyontae Johnson (who was hurt most of last season); Chris Board and Demetrius Flannigan-Fowles could be relied on if injuries hit New York, but their presence on the roster is linked to their special teams’ value.
The Overshown injury is unfortunate. Dallas signed Kenneth Murray Jr. and Jack Sanborn to compete with Marist Liufau and Damone Clark. Liufau had a solid rookie season and fits well into sub-packages but may not be limited to that role moving forward. The injury to Overshown forced Dallas to throw some darts at free agents for Matt Eberflus’ defense; they could have done worse, but they’re behind New York and Philadelphia without Overshown, who tore his right ACL, MCL, and PCL in Week 14 last year.
Washington has a good — but aging — duo at linebacker with Bobby Wagner and Frankie Luvu; the latter is one of the more underrated defenders in the NFL and is excellent moving forward on the blitz. Still, the group gets one point in the division.
Cornerback
4 points: Commanders
3 points: Cowboys
2 points: Eagles
1 point: Giants
I could be talked into either the Eagles, Commanders, or Cowboys for the four-pointer here. Still, I settled on Washington, which has Marshon Lattimore, Mike Sainristil, and they drafted Trey Amos in the second round — that’s a solid trio if Dan Quinn wants to use Sainristil as the nickel. They also have veterans Noah Igbinoghene and Jonathan Jones on the roster.
Dallas would be an easy number one if Trevon Diggs and Shavon Revel Jr. weren’t both recovering from torn ACLs; the former looks like he may miss the start of the 2025 season. However, I really appreciate DaRon Bland’s game, and Caelen Carson had a solid rookie season last year. Dallas also signed Kaiir Elam for depth.
Philadelphia hit on two draft picks at the position group last year in Cooper DeJean and Quinyon Mitchell, and former five-star recruit Kelee Ringo is set to start outside at left cornerback. I appreciate the addition of Adoree’ Jackson as well for Fangio. Still, I appreciate Dallas’ depth a bit more than Philadelphia and both Diggs and Revel Jr. should be available at some point this season.
The Giants were the clear 1-pointer in this department. I understand the Paulson Adebo signing, and it was necessary after the disappointing sophomore year from Tae Banks, who the Giants need to step up. I’m a big fan of Dru Phillips as the team’s nickel defender, and that’s a positive note for the Giants’ cornerback room, but the depth behind Banks is concerning, albeit Cor’Dale Flott showed some signs of development through the 2024 season. If Banks reaches his potential, then the Giants will outperform this grade, but that remains an if.
Safety
4 points: Cowboys
3 points: Eagles
2 points: Giants
1 point: Commanders
I’ve long been a fan of Malik Hooker, Donovan Wilson, and Israel Mukuamu. Although Mukuamu hasn’t had a massive impact in the NFL, his body type is unique enough to pose interesting matchups. Dallas also has Markquese Bell, who fit well with Dan Quinn but wasn’t as used last season before he suffered a season-ending shoulder injury.
Philadelphia gets a point over the Giants because of the Andrew Mukuba draft selection in the second round. Reed Blankenship and Sydney Brown are quality players, but I would take Tyler Nubin and Jevon Holland over that duo. However, Mukuba is far better than Dane Belton, so the Eagles gain that point. Washington comes in last with Quan Martin and Will Harris, who are a solid combination at safety of athletic upside and veteran leadership. Percy Butler is a solid three as well, but the Commanders get just one point.
Final thoughts
Let’s see the NFC East defensive point totals:
14 points: Eagles
13 points: Cowboys
12 points: Giants
11 points: Commanders
The Eagles steal the top spot again, with Dallas finishing with one more point than the Giants. Washington finished one point behind the Giants on defense in this very meticulous exercise. Here are the combined offensive and defensive points:
37 points: Eagles
25 points: Giants
25 points: Cowboys
23 points: Commanders
The Eagles finished with 12 more points than the Giants and Cowboys, who tied with 25. Washington finished with two fewer points than New York and Dallas, with 23 total points. This means the Giants will be a better team than the Commanders — there’s no other way to interpret such a precise and scholarly breakdown.
On a serious note, the Giants’ roster has improved over the last two seasons. They’re not completely devoid of talent in critical areas — they have superstars on the roster. There don’t appear to be many training camp battles for starting spots, although roles can still be earned. Of course, this does not mean the Giants will fully right the ship. There’s much more to winning football games than improving one’s roster.
If the Giants want to improve their standing in the NFL and compete for the playoffs, they MUST find ways to defeat the Commanders, Cowboys, and Eagles. The Giants lost all six of their divisional games last season and are 4-13-1 in the division since Brian Daboll and Joe Schoen assumed responsibility for the franchise. That has to improve.