Giants Victory Comes at a Cost as Draft Position Slips
The New York Football Giants finally broke their nine-game losing streak and their road losing streak. In today's Week 17 matchup, they took on the Las Vegas Raiders, who are currently sitting at the same record as the Giants. The Giants beat Las Vegas 34-10. Big Blue hasn’t won a game outside of MetLife Stadium since Week Five of the 2024 NFL Season. As happy as the team and the franchise are to go out and celebrate this win, there is also a fallback. The Giants have fallen in the draft order. It doesn’t hugely affect them, but this win changes a few things around for them for the upcoming 2026 NFL Draft.
New York played a team today that matched their level. Las Vegas did not have a successfully put-together squad, just as the Giants don’t. The Giants were missing several key players from their offensive and defensive lines. The defense was on top of the Raiders at all times. The way they played in this matchup is how they should have been playing all season long. The Giants weren’t only missing key players. The Raiders were missing one of their top defenders, Maxx Crosby, among others. Las Vegas left tons of openings for the Giants to barge through and score.
With this win, the Giants have officially moved down to the number two spot. The Raiders lost today's game and have the league's worst record at 2-14. The probability for the Giants to stay where they were was much higher before the game. Many fans had hoped that they would tank and keep the first draft pick, but this might actually work out in New York's favor. They can pick up a running back or a wide receiver who is projected to have a decent NFL season. Most of the time, the first pick is a bust for the team. The Tennessee Titans' Cam Ward was projected to have a fantastic year, but he found himself also struggling after being a first pick in the 2025 NFL Draft.
The team will draft second unless there are unusual results as of Week 18, which would bring the NFL to the end of the regular season. Big Blue could have a chance to move back into the number one spot, only if the Raiders win against the Kansas City Chiefs and New York beats the Dallas Cowboys to end their season on a decent note. It’s been a tough year, but New York can definitely pick someone up in the Draft who can help with the Giants' rebuild. They just need time to research who they want before doing anything else, and to hire a coach who knows exactly what they want.
