The New York Giants are entering a must-win, Week 17 matchup against the Dallas Cowboys. With a loss, the Giants will be eliminated from the playoffs. With a win, New York will need some help from Philadelphia, but they could earn their first playoff birth since 2016.
First and foremost, the Giants have to beat the Dallas Cowboys in Week 17 to make the playoffs. Despite Dallas’ 6-9 record, this will be no easy task for the Giants. The Giants narrowly lost their last matchup with the Cowboys by a score of 37-34 in Week 5. This game is significant for the Giants because it is the only game this season in which New York was able to top 30 points.
The Giants’ offense has been terrible this season. The Giants are averaging only 17.1 points per game this season, the second-worst average in the NFL behind only the New York Jets. A functioning offense has been rare in New York this season.
The Dallas Cowboys, on the other hand, have a pretty high octane offense. The Cowboys are only 6-9, but their record is not a reflection of poor offensive play. Dallas is averaging 25.1 points per game this season. Andy Dalton and the Cowboys’ offense has been on a hot streak over the last three weeks, though. Over this three-game winning streak, Dallas is averaging 36 points per game.
The Dallas Cowboys are bound to put up a high volume of yardage and points in Week 17. The New York Giants have an excellent defense, but there is only so much they will be able to do against Dalton and Dallas. The Cowboys are bound to put points on the board and the Giants’ offense is going to need to match and surpass that total.
If Jason Garrett and the Giants’ offense cannot keep up with Mike McCarthy and the Cowboys’ offense, then the Giants will not be playing football in the second week of January.