For the Giants, Saturday afternoon against the Vikings is not just another preseason stop. It’s the first real checkpoint of the John Harbaugh Era, and it arrives with more weight than any exhibition game should ever carry.
That’s what happens when a franchise has spent too long sliding into the background. Since the Super Bowl the Giants won under Tom Coughlin in February of 2012, they have felt far removed from the team their fans remember.
Brian Daboll did get them back to the postseason and won Coach of the Year in the process, but the bounce was short-lived. The Giants followed that playoff year with a 6-11 season, then dropped to last place at 3-14, then finished last again at 4-13 last season.
In the years before Daboll’s rookie season, they went 22-59. To Giants fans, the team still mattered.
To everyone else, not nearly enough.
That’s the backdrop for Harbaugh, who arrives with a 5-year contract worth $100 million and a very specific kind of burden. He is hoping to become the first coach ever to win Super Bowls with two different teams.
It’s a rare road, and not one that comes with much precedent. Parcells couldn’t do it with a second team after his first Lombardi Trophy.
Mike Holmgren couldn’t do it after leaving Green Bay for Seattle. Harbaugh is now taking his shot in the Meadowlands.
And this is his team now, with his quarterback at the center of it.
The kid is Dart, and he has already been given a lot of attention after bringing some life to another lost Giants season as a rookie. Still, there’s no guarantee he’ll even play against Minnesota.
If he does, it figures to be for a couple of series, partly because his training camp has been uneven and partly because the Giants want answers before the opener against the Cowboys on Sunday Night Football, Sept. 13.
Matt Nagy, the offensive coordinator, is under pressure too, and Giants fans have already been quick to point fingers at him before a preseason snap has even been thrown. Nagy has been trying to sort through what Dart is seeing and what he isn’t, and he explained it this way:
“If there’s one or two plays where he might not be seeing it well, let’s figure out why you’re not. And if you’re not, let’s just get rid of the play.
Let’s go to a different play. We’ve got enough plays.
And so, we’re digging through that right now. We’re filtering through that to figure out, “What does he like?
What’s he feel comfortable with?
“And so, now when we find those plays and we figure out what that is, now you’ve got to go execute and make them happen on the field, and I think that’s the biggest, probably, obstacle that we’re going through right now, which is fun as a coaching staff.”
Harbaugh has been careful when talking about Dart, even when asked directly whether the quarterback would see action Saturday. His answer: “That’s a good question I’m gonna have to dodge.”
That kind of caution fits the moment. Harbaugh did not get this job without Dart showing enough to matter, and now the coach and quarterback are tied together from here forward. As the Giants move toward their opener, both are under the spotlight.
The difference is that Harbaugh walked into a place that was already desperate for him. Giants fans have watched Ben McAdoo, Pat Shurmur, Joe Judge and Daboll come and go while the team kept shrinking.
When Harbaugh became available, the Giants came after him hard. They needed someone like him so badly they would have given him almost anything to get him.
So even a preseason game can feel like a statement. If Dart plays, fans will watch closely.
If he doesn’t, they’ll still be there to make sure Harbaugh knows exactly how glad they are to have him. That’s the kind of reception he’s been getting since the day he was hired, and it says everything about how badly Giants fans want their team to matter again.
In Other News...
Giants May Have Already Eased One Big Concern For Jaxson Dart
The Giants have spent training camp giving their offensive line something every young quarterback wants but rarely gets: continuity. Andrew Thomas, Jermaine Eluemunor, Jon Runyan Jr., rookie Francis Mauigoa and John Michael Schmitz have stayed together as the first unit, and the second-team group has reportedly remained mostly intact as well. For a team trying to settle Jaxson Dart into his new surroundings, that kind of stability matters, especially when it comes to the protection in front of him.
Dart enters a roster still sorting through other moving parts, but the line gives him a cleaner starting point than many rookies get. A lower sack rate is always part of the conversation for any young passer, and the Giants have at least made one important area feel less volatile by leaning on experienced blockers and keeping the same mix in place through camp. Whether that carries over once the games start is still the real test, but for now, one of the biggest concerns around Dart looks a little less daunting. [Read more 🡒]
Micah McFadden Has A Real Chance To Change The Giants Defense
Micah McFaddens return to the Giants has been one of the quieter camp developments, but it is starting to look like a meaningful one. After fully recovering from the season-ending Lisfranc injury that cut short his 2025 campaign, he re-signed on a one-year deal and has spent training camp showing the kind of form that made him part of the conversation in the first place. For a defense still sorting out its linebacker picture, that matters.
McFadden is working in a crowded room with Tremaine Edmunds, Arvell Reese and rookie Jack Kelly all in the mix for snaps, and that competition gives the Giants options if he keeps building momentum. His preseason return will be the next real checkpoint, and what he does there could tell the team plenty about how much more stable and disruptive this unit can become. [Read more 🡒]
Giants Kicking Battle Is Suddenly Leaning Toward An Unexpected Name
The Giants kicking competition has taken a sharp turn in camp, and it now has the feel of a real job battle rather than just an open audition. Undrafted free agent Dominic Zvada has been pushing the pace in practice, while second-year kicker Ben Sauls has been right there with him, giving the coaching staff a pair of legs to evaluate as the preseason opener approaches.
John Harbaugh acknowledged both kickers for the way they handled the moment, which only adds to the intrigue around a competition that was already trending toward the unexpected. With other players making their cases and a few injury situations still being monitored, the kicking picture is one of the more closely watched items before the games start counting for real. [Read more 🡒]