The New York Giants head into their bye with a 2-8 record through their first ten games and a current position at the second overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft.

There have been many reasons behind the Giants’ struggles this season, beyond quarterback play, injuries and coaching. Let’s take a look at the biggest culprits holding the Giants back, and then how the Giants can begin to reverse some of these negative trends.

There is a belief in football that you cannot win if you lose the turnover battle. Look no further than the 2024 New York Giants, who have a turnover differential of minus-six, for indisputable proof.

In ten games, the Giant offense turned the ball over 13 times, with seven interceptions and six lost fumbles. In particular, the Giants running backs were sloppy when it came to protecting the ball, throwing five fumbles, the same number of rushing touchdowns as the group.

They are followed by the quarterback, who has a combined six fumbles this season. Again, out of the total fumbles, only six were lost, but it goes without saying that when you lose control of the ball, you potentially lose yardage, and this team just isn’t good enough right now to overcome setbacks resulting from their own doing.

Additionally, protecting the football will put the defense in compromising situations and force them to defend short fields.

Meanwhile, the Giants defense struggled to force turnovers to get the ball back to their offense. Only eight total defensive turnovers were forced, seven fumbles recovered and one interception.

The defensive secondary has struggled to play the football and the offense’s lack of ball security has hurt this team significantly. The Giants need to generate more turnovers on defense and the offense needs to limit its mistakes.

The Giants offense ranks 20th in the league in third-down conversion percentage (37.3%). While it’s not a kiss of death, it’s not a sign of any great lasting offense.

This attack lacks consistency and reliability on key tests. They’re averaging about 4.4 yards per play on third downs this season.

According to official NFL stats, the Giants have found themselves on third-and-long (6 yards or more) 67 times this season, meaning they’re not really helping themselves on first and second downs either.

But we are moving away. Not being able to convert these large bets at a higher percentage results in scoring stagnation or “settling” of field goals. Quarterback Daniel Jones does much better with shorter downs and yards where the offensive play can be balanced and unpredictable.

Of course, with a quarterback change likely, we’ll see if that helps with future third down conversions. However, staying out of third-and-long situations would help regardless of who is at center.

The Giants passing offense is currently one of the least productive in the NFL. He is averaging 189.8 passing yards per game, 24th in the league.

With the combination of inept quarterback play and high pressure (8.57% sacks per pass attempt, 22nd in the league, plus an overall pressure rate of 36%), the Giants had struggled to execute passing game designs.

They’re not devoid of or short on weapons, but inconsistent protection coupled with Jones’ play in the pocket hurts their passing attack.

The Giants’ offense is the worst in the league (ranked 32nd) in conversion and red zone efficiency. In their 77 games in the red zone this season (23rd), they converted 39.29%, which is last in the championship.

The Giants don’t have trouble getting to the red zone, but once they cross that magic line into the “dead zone”, things fall apart. They average 2.4 yards per play in 20th, 27th in the league. Minimal gains in the red zone limit their ability to convert those opportunities into touchdowns.

Speaking of touchdowns, the Giants have scored 11 total touchdowns in the red zone this season, making them 2nd worst in the league, ahead of the Cleveland Browns. Jones and the passing offense average 1.8 yards per attempt, ranking dead last.

Part of the problem is play selection: The Giants tend to call slow-developing plays, which allow defenders, who already have an advantage by having less ground to cover, to get in position to make a quick play.

By making quicker strikes instead of plays like wide runs or five- and seven-step drops, they may be able to improve their efficiency in the red zone over these final seven games.

It could also help to continue to lean on rookie running back Tyrone Tracy, Jr. to keep the offense balanced and on schedule.

Plus, whoever becomes quarterback needs a little more help behind an offensive line whose pass protection has seen a few more hiccups recently. This can be accomplished by moving the release point, especially in the red zone, to create a natural run/pass option.

Overall, the offense is the biggest problem with this Giants team and the main reason why the record is what it is. By solving some of these issues – and they have the resources to do so – the defense can be put in a position to be more aggressive in attacking the ball and potentially force turnovers.

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