It is the dawn of a new day in East Rutherford, New Jersey. After years of struggling to field a competitive football team, the New York Giants seem to have the most talented roster in years. There are talented players on both sides of the ball, and a strong coaching staff; they have a chance to take a step forward. Sure, they may not be playoff contenders, but they can easily be a scrappy team that battles and wins games they probably should not. Here are five storylines to follow during camp this year.
5. The Health of Offensive Stars
Outside of Jaxson Dart, the two most important players in the Giants’ offense are Cam Skattebo and Malik Nabers. During their short NFL careers, they have proven to be impact players and can be cornerstone pieces of this offense. But both of them suffered season-ending injuries before the halfway point of last season. Nabers tore his ACL in Week 4, and Skattebo broke his tibia and right ankle as well as ruptured a deltoid ligament. There are real concerns about whether they can return to the players they were.
These concerns are a bit less with Skattebo, as he has seemed to make a full recovery. Although he is trying his best to hurt himself again. Nabers, on the other hand, is a different story. Sure, it was reported that he won’t go on the PUP list, but he still could miss time this season. Any time that Nabers and/or Skattebo miss is a big blow for the Giants. This will make the Giants’ offense much more one-dimensional and much easier to scheme against. Causing their offense to be towards the bottom of the league.
4. Can Arvell Reese Find a Home On the Defense
It was a bit of a surprise when the Giants drafted Arvell Reese with the 5th overall pick. Sure, he was arguably the best player in the draft, but they did not need another edge rusher. With guys like Brian Burns, Abdul Carter, and Kayvon Thibodeaux, many feel that the Giants could have used the pick to address another area of need. But when you have an opportunity to draft a player of Reese’s talent, you can not pass up on it. If developed properly, he could be a cornerstone of the Giants.
Early on, it appears that Reese is going to be used as an off-ball linebacker, who will slide over to edge rusher or outside linebacker in certain packages. His strength and athleticism should give him the ability to perform well, but we just need to see it translate to on-the-field success. We should see Reese getting a lot of snaps during the preseason to try and get a feel for the position. He also should be paired exclusively with Tremaine Edmunds to develop more chemistry.
3. Who Will Be the Cornerback Two
One of the biggest problems the Giants had last season was their secondary. They gave up 3,642 passing yards last season and around 214 passing yards per game. This ranked middle of the pack. A big reason for these less-than-stellar stats was the underperformance in the secondary. Guys like Paulson Abedo and Danate Banks did not play up to expectations. Plus, Cor’dale Flott left in free agency, leaving a big hole in a group that already needed help. Sure, they have Dru Phillips, but he plays much better at the nickel position.
This offseason, the Giants brought in a couple of veterans in Greg Newsome and Ar’Darius Washington. They also spent a second-round pick on Colton Hood from Tennessee. The competition should be between Newsome and Hood for that job. Newsome has shown flashes of being a decent corner, and Hood has all the makings of a solid NFL corner. The goal of this season should be for Newsome to cover until Hood is ready to be the everyday starter.
2. What Should We Expect Out of Jaxson Dart In a New Offense
The biggest positive of the 2025 season for the Giants was the emergence of Dart. After taking over as the starter in week four, he took the league by storm. Sure, he did miss some time due to injuries, but still put enough on tape to look like the next franchise quarterback. In 14 games, he completed 216 of 339 passes for 2,272 yards, 15 touchdowns, and only five interceptions. He also rushed for 487 yards and nine touchdowns. If he can stay healthy, he has the potential to be a star.
But the only question is: will Dart take that next step during his sophomore campaign? He is under a new offensive system, with Matt Nagy named offensive coordinator. There is also the report that they plan to use Dart like the Ravens used Lamar Jackson. During training camp, we should see if Dart looks comfortable in the offense. If he is able to make some decent throws and not make mistakes, it’s a sign that he is ready to take that next step. That Dart is ready to become the franchise quarterback we all believe him to be.
1. Can John Harbaugh Build the Culture the Giants Have Lacked
For years, the biggest thing the Giants have lacked was a winning culture. This can be traced to the guys they had as head coach. Whether it was Ben McAdoo, Pat Shurmur, or Joe Judge, none of them seemed to get the locker room’s respect. There was a brief moment when Brian Daboll seemed to have it, but he cared more about being liked and making sure he looked good in the media rather than being an actual leader. But that should change with a guy like John Harbaugh at the helm.
The biggest thing Harbaugh needs to do is get these players to buy in. Sure, his first speech has not been received well. But that is a small clip taken out of context. Harbaugh needs to be the leader this team has lacked since Tom Coughlin and Eli Manning left. Put the respect back on the Giants that has been lost due to years of mismanagement and poor play. We need to see him preach this win-now mindset and have pride in the team from day one.
