For New York sports fans, Sunday was a day of mixed emotions. While the Yankees watched their playoff hopes fade at the hands of their hated nemesis, running into the buzzsaw that is the Houston Astros (American League champs for the fourth time in six years), the Giants continued their surprising start, going on the road to beat Jacksonville for their fourth straight victory, equaling their win total from last season.
It feels like the Giants’ bubble is just waiting to burst—they entered Sunday having led on just 23.3 percent of their offensive snaps, easily the lowest of any team with a winning record and 25th overall, according to Rich Hribar of Sharp Football Analysis. Yet, even while playing from behind on a near-weekly basis, the G-Men continue to get it done, riding Saquon Barkley’s fourth-quarter heroics to another come-from-behind win that nobody, including ESPN’s “Matchup Predictor” (which forecast a Jaguars victory with 73-percent confidence), could have seen coming.
New York will be tested in upcoming matchups with Dallas, Minnesota and Philadelphia (the only remaining unbeaten at a pristine 6-0), though the Giants seem well on their way to playing postseason football, breathing new life into a fanbase that, in recent years, hasn’t had much to celebrate. Speaking of celebrating, rookie coach Brian Daboll was ecstatic after Sunday’s win, puffing a victory cigar while acknowledging fans outside TIAA Bank Stadium.
The latest branch to sprout off the Bill Belichick coaching tree, Daboll finds himself an early frontrunner for NFL Coach of the Year, fixing the mess left by his predecessor Joe Judge while turning the Giants around in record time. Relative to past years, the Giants’ discipline and attention to detail have been staggering, allowing them to overcome whatever talent deficiencies they may face in a league where games are won and lost in the margins. Off to their best start since 2008, New York’s early success more than entitles Daboll to a post-game stogie, even if his work restoring the Giants to relevance is just beginning.
LISTEN on the Audacy App
Sign Up and Follow Audacy Sports
Facebook | Twitter | Instagram