It took just one game for the New York Giants to look like a strong team under new coach John Harbaugh.
It was like the ugliness of going 7-27 over the past two seasons had evaporated with one 60-minute football game.
There were solid performances from the players and a stellar game plan from Harbaugh and staff. And there was toughness – something not always found in recent editions of the Giants.
The 28-20 victory over the NFC East Division foe Dallas Cowboys on the Sunday Night stage was a stellar opening to the Harbaugh era.
But as good as the Giants looked, never forget this: Winning your season opener isn’t a sign that a team has arrived. The season can go the other way.
Just ask the 2020 Jacksonville Jaguars. Doug Marrone coached Jacksonville to a 27-20 victory over the Indianapolis Colts in Week 1. The Jaguars then lost all 15 remaining games.
You can trust a Harbaugh-coached team won’t bottom out that badly but New York has missed the playoffs in eight of the past nine seasons for a reason.
The simple explanation is the Giants haven’t been very good. Of course, the merry-go-round of coaches (four full-timers, two interims in 10 seasons) is not the type of things equated to winning teams.
So Harbaugh was hired and the mission is to make the Giants a perennial playoff team. Few people expect him to fall short.
Maybe it’s the fact he won 180 regular-season games, produced 11 seasons of 10 or more wins, made 12 playoff appearances and won a Super Bowl ring during his 18 seasons with the Baltimore Ravens.
That sounds like a Hall of Fame resume in progress. In fact, only five NFL coaches have 250 career victories. He’s 69 away from joining that club after the victory over Dallas.
Harbaugh teams are typically well-prepared and highly organized. He has a structure and has quickly changed New York’s culture before coaching his second game.
Tight end Isaiah Likely was one of four Ravens who followed Harbaugh to The Meadowlands. He made a stellar first impression by catching two touchdowns against the Cowboys.
Likely spent four seasons listening to Harbaugh’s speeches and watching his methods. He now sees that his new teammates are hearing the messages and buying in.
“I’d say it’s really his identity, his culture,” Likely told The New York Post. “Obviously with the Ravens, he had been there for so long, it feels like it was the Ravens identity. But coach Harbaugh was always the head coach.
“I feel like he instilled the Ravens mantra and everything. So when he got over here, I guess you can quote-unquote say it was the Ravens mantra, but it’s coach Harbaugh’s culture.”
Harbaugh and the Giants are preparing for their Week 2 game on Monday night at the Los Angeles Rams. It will be the team’s second straight prime-time contest, surely another element of the Harbaugh factor.
Why else would a team that went 4-13 last season be on national TV in their first two games of the following season?
Only the Harbaugh factor prompted that double-double.
For New York to be a threat in the NFC playoff competition, second-year quarterback Jaxson Dart needs to take a step forward, while second-year running back Cam Skattebo and third-year receiver Malik Nabers need to stay healthy.
Dart threw 15 touchdown passes against five interceptions last season so that ratio is promising. But there isn’t enough evidence that Dart will become a Top 10 quarterback this season, either.
Defensively, pass rusher Brian Burns was a force last season with 16.5 sacks so imagine the damage New York could do if second-year pro Abdul Carter emerges as a double-digit sack artist too.
New York defensive backs had just six interceptions last season and the Giants had only nine as a team. Surely, becoming more opportunistic – like many Harbaugh teams – is a priority.
The Giants lost nine straight games at one point last season. Anybody think that will ever happen with Harbaugh coaching the team?
Let’s watch and see how things unfold.
But this much is already clear: The New York Giants will no longer be laughingstocks.
