The Giants are in a position they haven’t been in since 2022: sitting on top of the NFC East at 4-2-1 and heading out of their bye with a real path to the playoffs. That makes the next few days interesting for Joe Schoen, especially with the Nov. 10 trade deadline closing in fast.
Most of the talk around New York has centered on who the Giants might add, with help needed at running back and defensive tackle. But there’s another angle here: what if the Giants use one of their own quarterbacks to bring back draft capital, especially for 2027?
That’s where Jameis Winston enters the picture, and Baltimore’s current quarterback mess makes the idea at least worth kicking around.
The Ravens are staring at a rough situation after Lamar Jackson suffered a thumb injury that could end his season. Tyler Huntley is also dealing with a toe injury, which leaves undrafted rookie Joe Fagnano as Baltimore’s only healthy quarterback option heading into Thursday’s game against the 5-2 Jacksonville Jaguars.
Baltimore is 4-4, so the season isn’t dead yet. The AFC playoff race is wide open, and the Ravens still have a defense loaded with stars. But asking Fagnano to keep that run alive is a huge ask.
Winston has already given the Giants something to work with this season. He’s 2-1-1 as New York’s starter, completing 57% of his passes for 957 yards, seven touchdowns, and five interceptions. He stepped in after Jaxson Dart’s season-ending knee injury in Week 2, then got benched in the fourth quarter against the Saints in Week 6.
Since then, J.J. McCarthy has taken over and helped the Giants beat Houston in Week 7.
In that game, he completed 71.4% of his passes for 252 yards. It’s a tiny sample, but he has looked like a former top-10 pick, and that could make Winston more movable than he was a week ago.
The Giants are already down to five picks in the 2027 Draft, so adding another selection has real appeal. If Baltimore gets desperate enough, this is exactly the kind of deal a draft-pick-minded team would at least have to consider.
There’s obvious risk in moving Winston now. New York is leading the division, and having a veteran backup matters when you’re trying to stay in the playoff race. That’s part of why the Giants signed him in the first place.
Still, Jake Haener remains on the roster, and the 27-year-old showed enough in the preseason to at least be in the conversation for QB2 if Winston is dealt. It would be a gamble, but one the Giants could justify if the Ravens put a meaningful offer on the table.
Winston’s two-year, $13 million extension from this offseason could also make a trade trickier, and Baltimore may want a cheaper answer anyway. But for a team that came into the year with Super Bowl hopes, leaning on a fresh-off-the-couch Jimmy Garoppolo with nine games left may not be the answer.
And if the Giants can squeeze a pick out of Baltimore’s desperation while still keeping their playoff hopes intact, that’s the kind of move worth exploring.
In Other News...
Giants Trade Buzz Around Ashton Jeanty Comes With One Big Catch
As the trade deadline approaches, Ashton Jeanty has become one of the more intriguing names to watch for a Giants team still sorting through its backfield options. The chatter picked up after his workload dipped in a recent game, and it is easy to see why New York would at least be interested in a player with his talent and upside if the Raiders were ever willing to listen.
The catch is that any serious pursuit would come with a heavy cost, which makes this more of a conversation piece than a likely move right now. The Giants are still weighing other running back possibilities as they look for help before the deadline, and unless the market shifts in a major way, Jeanty feels like the kind of target that sparks buzz without necessarily becoming realistic. [Read more 🡒]
Giants Face A Very Different Eagles Test With NFC East Control At Stake
The Giants come out of their bye week facing a very different kind of Eagles team than the one that has defined this rivalry in recent seasons. Philadelphia has dropped six straight and sits at 2-6, a sharp turn for a roster that still carries plenty of talent but has struggled to find its footing, while New York enters with a 4-2-1 record and a chance to tighten its grip on the NFC East race.
A new-look Philadelphia offense adds another layer to the matchup, and that is where the Giants will have to be especially sharp. With Jalen Hurts unavailable, the Eagles are moving forward with Tanner McKee under center, which changes the way New York has to prepare for a division opponent that is suddenly much harder to project. For a Giants team with control of the standings within reach, the test is less about the familiar name on the jersey and more about how quickly it can adjust to what this version of the Eagles actually is. [Read more 🡒]
Giants Face A Trade Deadline Decision That Suddenly Feels Bigger
The Giants are spending their bye week in a far better spot than anyone might have expected, still sitting atop the NFC East after Dallas fell to Arizona in overtime. Even with the break, the attention around the building has not slowed, because the front office is believed to be looking for ways to shore up weak spots before the trade deadline, especially along the trenches and in the backfield.
That makes the next stretch feel more consequential than a typical midseason pause. New York has a chance to be more than just a division leader in the standings, and the deadline could be the place where it tries to turn that into something sturdier, even if no deal is imminent and nothing has been finalized yet. [Read more 🡒]