The New York Giants are almost done with their utterly disappointing 2021 season. Entering Week 17, the Giants sit at the bottom of the NFC East with a 4-11 record. The team will travel to Chicago to face the Bears in the second-to-last week of the season. The Giants, already eliminated from playoff contention, do not have much left for which to compete.
This could be a winnable game for the Giants, though, as the 5-10 Chicago Bears start backup quarterback Nick Foles on Sunday. The main storyline of this matchup for both teams will pertain to the upcoming 2022 NFL Draft. The Giants own the Bears’ first-round pick in this year’s upcoming draft, so winning or losing to Chicago will affect New York’s draft value.
The Giants’ 4-11 record is disappointing and reflects the poor state of their roster, however, injuries played a big part in the downfall of the 2021 Giants. New York is the most injured team in the NFL this season. In Week 17, the Giants are rolling into Chicago with a completely depleted wide receiver corps.
Injuries at wide receiver
Kenny Golladay is the New York Giants’ only healthy starting wide receiver entering Week 17. This might be surprising considering the injury history that KenNYG has dealt with in the past, but in a year as wild as 2021, Golladay is the last man standing.
Kadarius Toney is OUT on Sunday with a shoulder injury. Darius Slayton is OUT after being replaced on the reserve/COVID-19 list. Sterling Shepard is on injured reserve with a torn Achilles. John Ross is OUT with a knee injury, as is Collin Johnson with a hamstring. Wide receiver CJ Board and Dante Pettis are also on injured reserve.
This leaves the New York Giants with a corps of the following players:
- Kenny Golladay
- Pharoh Cooper (Practice Squad)
- Alex Bachman (Practice Squad)
- David Sills (Practice Squad)
- Travis Toivonen (Practice Squad)
An inexperienced and largely inadequate bunch of playmakers. Life will not be easy for the New York Giants on offense (as it never is). Thankfully, the season is almost at its end, leaving the Giants with a full offseason to get healthy and reset with plans to improve in 2022.