The New York Giants are no longer being treated like a cute little offseason sleeper. The playoff talk has gotten loud, and Adam Schefter just turned the volume up another notch.
During an appearance on "The Pat McAfee Show," Schefter made his stance clear on the Giants’ chances if their young core can stay on the field. He said, "Cam [Skattebo], Jaxson Dart, Malik Nabers, those guys are all healthy, they're gonna be a playoff team.
They're gonna be a playoff team. If those guys can stay healthy and play a majority of the season, I think they can go to the playoffs."
That kind of endorsement carries weight, especially with training camp right around the corner and the Giants already drawing real postseason buzz. Since hiring head coach John Harbaugh in January, the team has gone from long-shot chatter to a legitimate threat in the NFC.
Schefter isn’t the only one seeing it. Bleacher Report's Brad Gagnon and Eric Edholm of NFL.com have also pointed toward the Giants as a team capable of making a run.
The logic is easy to follow: New York has a talented young group, and last season injuries ripped that group apart. Now Harbaugh is in charge, and his track record speaks for itself.
The comparison some are making is obvious. Harbaugh turned the Baltimore Ravens into a steady playoff team early in his tenure, reaching the postseason in each of his first five seasons after the franchise had won just five games the year before he arrived. That kind of turnaround is exactly why optimism is building around the Giants now.
Still, the biggest condition in all of this is health. Schefter’s point only works if Dart, Nabers, and Skattebo are available for most of the season.
Without that trio, the offense loses too much. Last year already showed how limited Dart can be when he doesn’t have Nabers and Skattebo with him.
He’s an electric quarterback, but he can’t carry the whole thing by himself.
There is at least some good news on that front. Skattebo is expected to be ready when training camp opens, while Nabers remains sidelined.
His return timeline is unclear, and Joe Schoen’s Week 1 target looks less and less realistic. The Giants are hoping their star receiver can get back sooner rather than later.
If those three young pieces stay healthy, the Giants have a real shot to make their first playoff appearance since 2022.
In Other News...
Giants Camp Buzz Builds As John Mara Update Hits Home
The Giants offseason conversation keeps circling back to the same two young names, and for good reason. Abdul Carter flashed enough as a rookie to make improvement in 2026 feel like a real possibility, while Jaxson Dart enters his second NFL season with a new coaching staff and another offense to absorb, the kind of early-career test that can either slow a quarterback down or sharpen the runway ahead.
John Maras health update adds a more personal layer to the whole picture, because the co-owner and CEO remains involved with the team while going through cancer treatment. He has stayed connected enough to matter in the building, and his presence comes at a time when the Giants are trying to sort out projections, coaching changes and the next step for a roster that believes its young core can start to carry more of the load. [Read more 🡒]
Giants May Finally Have A Return Game Fans Can Believe In
For a team that has spent too much time searching for a spark in the return game, Deonte Banks gave the Giants a real one in 2025. He averaged 32.7 yards per kick return, finished second in the NFL, and punctuated the year with a 95-yard kickoff return touchdown in Week 17, the kind of play that can flip field position and change how opponents kick to you.
Calvin Austin III adds a different kind of value, giving New York a proven punt-return presence to pair with Banks and potentially reshape the bottom of the roster. Banks coverage work was shaky enough that the Giants declined his fifth-year option, so special teams may be his clearest path to sticking around, while Austins arrival gives the club a chance to keep two return threats in roles that actually fit them. [Read more 🡒]
Giants Finally Have Options And Deonte Banks Feels The Pressure
For a defense that has spent too much recent time patching together the cornerback spot, training camp suddenly looks a lot different. The Giants have brought in Paulson Adebo, Greg Newsome II and Colton Hood, giving the room real depth and turning what used to feel like an emergency project into a position group with actual choices.
Deonte Banks is right in the middle of that shift, and the pressure is obvious. The first-round pick has to show he can be dependable in coverage and finish plays on the ball, because the Giants now have multiple corners competing for the same snaps and a staff that can afford to keep rotating until somebody separates. [Read more 🡒]