The Giants‘ 34-17 prime time blowout of the Philadelphia Eagles got the NFL’s attention.
Sunday’s showing against the Denver Broncos at Mile High will reveal whether Brian Daboll’s team is actually for real.
The Broncos players aren’t buying the hype based on a week full of trash talk, including pass rusher Nik Bonitto calling the Giants’ fan base “delusional.”
But Daboll and the Giants (2-4) know there is only one way to earn respect: Beat the Broncos (4-2) on Sunday.
Back up their beatdown of Philly and their 2-1 record in Jaxson Dart’s first three starts.
“I’d just say this: that’s a really good football team. None of that really matters,” Daboll said of the Broncos’ trash talk. “What matters is how you perform during the week and how you play on Sunday. We’re in a competitive industry, an emotional industry, but the most important thing is doing your job leading up to Sunday and then ultimately going out there and playing well.”
The fate of this 2025 Giants team and of Daboll as their coach might swing on Sunday’s result as much as any other this season.
They sit in last place in the NFC East right now. But if the Giants beat Denver to improve to 3-4 overall, there is a scenario where a Week 9 win over the Eagles in South Philadelphia could vault New York into first place in the division entering Week 10.
A victory over the Broncos, who haven’t lost at home in a calendar year (7-0), probably would embolden Giants GM Joe Schoen to follow through on some of the trade deadline groundwork he laid this week for a receiver — perhaps New Orleans Saints wideout Chris Olave.
Daboll also would be able to strut his way back East knowing his decision to bench Russell Wilson at 0-3 for Dart did nothing short of save the Giants’ season — and maybe his career as this team’s head coach.
A loss to Denver, on the other hand, would bring the hype back down to Earth with a 2-5 record. Schoen presumably would recognize that trading premium future assets for a No. 1 receiver was no longer prudent, and that Week 9 visit to Philly suddenly would look more like a nervous last stand rather than a golden opportunity.
No one needs this win more than Daboll, though. Even his recent success has been a rollercoaster.
He embarrassed himself and the franchise, again, with his sideline hysterics during last Thursday night’s national broadcast. The joint investigation between the NFL and players’ union into Daboll will result in at least a hefty fine for the Giants, if not a forfeited draft pick.
Daboll’s eruptions are nothing new. He had to be monitored by Schoen on the headsets for four games in 2021 due to his toxic dynamic with his staff. But that’s the problem:
It wasn’t acceptable the first time, despite Giants ownership letting it go as good coordinators and assistant coaches were either shown or left on their own. Now it’s just gotten old.
Everyone knows how the NFL works, though: if Daboll keeps winning, this will get remembered and maybe even spun by the Giants and their friends as a simple hiccup.
If Daboll starts losing again, this is exactly the kind of behavior that will be etched on the tombstone of his tenure.
Skepticism abounds about whether this Giants team is for real. The Broncos are front and center among those doubting that Dart and the Giants can keep this going.
The Giants’ task on Sunday is to shut Sean Payton’s team up and prove that their fan base is far from delusional — they’re just ahead of the curve.
O-LINE COACH, SLAYTON STAYING HOME
Giants offensive line coach Carmen Bricillo did not travel to Denver with the team due to personal reasons. Assistant offensive line coach James Ferentz will replace Bricillo on the sideline. Five players stayed home and are out for the game, as well: wide receiver Darius Slayton (hamstring), center John Michael Schmitz Jr. (concussion), defensive lineman Chauncey Golston (neck) and linebackers Demetrius Flannigan-Fowles (hamstring) and Swayze Bozeman (ankle).
