Week 1 NFL power rankings: Giants clock in at No. 25 to open the regular season

The New York Giants finished the 2020 NFL season with a 6-10 record to place second in the NFC East. Entering the 2021 season, New York fans are hoping for a better outcome.

Aggregating seven rankings from around the Internet, the Giants come out to an average ranking of No. 25 in the 32-team NFL at the end of the 2020 season. Following the end of last season, the Giants were ranked No. 24 in the league.

Let’s check out what outlets around the league are saying about the Giants at the start of the regular season:

CBS Sports (Prisco): No. 24

This is a prove-it year for quarterback Daniel Jones. He has to show he’s the long-term answer. Getting a healthy Saquon Barkley back will help. The concern is the line in front of him.

NFL.com: No. 24

Will the Giants have Saquon Barkley on the field when they open their 2021 season against the Broncos? Big Blue has brought its star running back along slowly following last year’s surgery to repair a torn ACL, and there’s a sense that the Giants will ease Barkley back into the mix in the initial weeks of the new season. The former No. 2 overall pick played a whopping 83 percent of New York’s offensive snaps in his first two seasons — it’s fair to wonder if he’ll ever see usage like that again. Devontae Booker — signed on the opening day of free agency — will be a key figure early on.

Bleacher Report: No. 24

After a disappointing 2020 season, the New York Giants were one of the league’s more aggressive teams in free agency. They doled out big contracts to the likes of wide receiver Kenny Golladay and cornerback Adoree’ Jackson, who should help to bolster their offense and defense, respectively.

However, their offensive line is such a disaster that it might prevent them from contending in the NFC East.

After allowing double-digit sacks as a rookie, tackle Andrew Thomas was a turnstile again in the preseason. Veteran tackle Nate Solder, who opted out of the 2020 season, was no better when he last played in 2019. PFF graded the line as the worst in the league this year.

The Ringer: No. 28

The Giants took steps toward boosting their offense in the offseason, signing free agent receiver Kenny Golladay and drafting former Florida star Kadarius Toney in the first round. But even the best-laid plans sometimes falter: Golladay has been nursing a hamstring injury for the past month, and even when he was healthy he had struggled to get on the same page with Daniel Jones. Toney, meanwhile, missed most of training camp due to a litany of issues, and it doesn’t seem like he’s on track to be a big contributor early on. It helps Jones that Saquon Barkley should be ready to go early in the season, but there aren’t many good vibes around this New York offense.

Numberfire.com: No. 25

Athlon Sports: No. 26

The media capital of the world is determined to break down just about every throw Daniel Jones makes this year and as much as the supposed franchise quarterback is facing pressure, so too is his OC Jason Garrett. There were signs of turning the corner in Joe Judge’s first season but now those tricky expectations creeping in to make the spotlight even brighter on a team that could be much better if healthy.

ESPN: No. 24

Fifteen wins in three seasons since he took over says it all. The Giants need to win some games in order for Gettleman to feel safe. A fourth straight losing year would not reflect well on the 70-year-old general manager, especially if the offensive line and/or quarterback were among the primary reasons for the team's failure. Gettleman's legacy ultimately rests on the success of Daniel Jones and an O-line that was supposed to be his top priority when he took the job four years ago. Both remain massive question marks for this organization.