Giants happy to play the underdog role and keep on defying the odds

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Schwartz, P. (2026, October 17). Giants happy to play the underdog role and keep on defying the odds. New York Post. https://nypost.com/2026/10/17/sports/giants-happy-to-play-the-underdog-role-sportsbooks-keep-putting-them-in/

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New York Post · collected 2026-10-18 · by Paul Schwartz

Quick Summary

The New York Giants are currently leading the NFC East at 3-1-1 despite being underdogs in many of their games this season, including an upcoming home game against the Saints on Sunday. Defensive coordinator Dennard Wilson emphasized that the team thrives on playing with a chip on its shoulder and embraces the underdog status. Quarterback J.J. McCarthy saw limited action last week but may continue to be used as a change-of-pace option for unpredictable moments in games, according to offensive coordinator Matt Nagy.
Written locally by qwen2.5:14b on 2026-10-18, using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the same event (that is the story summary below).

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Story summary

The New York Giants have defied expectations this season, standing alone in first place in the NFC East with a record of 3-1-1 despite being an underdog in their upcoming home game against the Saints. The Saints, currently struggling at 1-4, have three consecutive losses in New Orleans, yet the Giants are still favored only by half a point for Sunday's match. Defensive coordinator Dennard Wilson expressed that his team thrives on playing with a "chip on their shoulder," as they continue to exceed predictions this season. The Giants were also underdogs at home against the bottom-dwelling Cardinals and have shown resilience, going 4-1 against the point spread this year.

Written for “Giants Defy Odds As Underdogs” on 2026-10-18, grounded in this article and the 0 other(s) covering the same event.

Story

📰 Giants Defy Odds As Underdogs
Sports · 1 article(s) covering the same event.

Compared with similar articles

This article reads unscored and hedges 0% of its claims. Each row says how that neighbour differs.
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“The articles discuss different aspects of the Giants' performance and situation over time rather than a single specific event.”
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“Article A describes a specific game where the Giants tied against Washington due to turnovers, while Article B discusses broader expectations and standings for the team.”
New York Post
⚖️ leaning not scored 🔴 0% hedged 0 of 7 📰 publisher trust 67
“Article A discusses John Harbaugh's reaction after a recent game, while Article B focuses on the Giants' performance and role as underdogs throughout the season.”
New York Post
⚖️ leaning not scored 🔴 0% hedged 0 of 3 📰 publisher trust 67
“The articles discuss different points in time regarding the Giants' season performance and standings.”
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24
sentences that state something as happening or true
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0%
0 of 24 hedged ("reportedly", "may", "according to")
Leaning
not political
takes no side on a contested political question
Publisher signals
67/100
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1
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New York Post · 11294 article(s) · 32 correction(s) detected
Running correction rate · 32 correction(s)

Who wrote this

Paul Schwartz
38 article(s) here · 1 carrying a prediction
🔮 Even though the Giants hired John Harbaugh, there were not many great expectations for how they would fare this season from outside the building.
🔮 The thinking is the trailing team will need 15 points to win the game, so go for two after the first touchdown and if you do not get it, go for two after the second touchdown.
🔮 There is also no doubt the Giants were incredibly fortunate that the Commanders in the final minute of overtime offered a What Not To Do tutorial to anyone watching who could not believe their eyes.
🔮 I obviously could probably make a move here and there, but sometimes it’s better for the team, beating up on the other team, lowering the shoulder.
🔮 But what about the emotional wounds that might take a few weeks to clear from the psyches?
🔮 At least the Giants will not be blindsided, as far as who they are facing at quarterback this weekend.
🔮 Heading into his second week with his new team, it sure sounds as if the Giants will do everything possible to fast-forward the learning process to get McCarthy into the No. 2 spot behind starter Jameis Winston in time for Sunday’s game with the Commanders.
🔮 If the player went down, the final score would have been 30-24 and that would have been just fine for the home team.
🔮 Either safety will have his hands full with McBride, who is not a physical mismatch but can be a skill-set nightmare to deal with.
🔮 Will it be there Sunday against the Cardinals, who are 1-2 but are averaging 21 points a game?
Also by Paul Schwartz
Nothing else under this byline is closely related to this article, so these are simply their most recent.
All 38 articles by Paul Schwartz →

Topics

Commanders Giants New Orleans Saints Titans

Subjects

Giants ORG · 7× Commanders ORG · 2× Mbow PERSON · 2× Saints ORG · 2× Dennard Wilson PERSON · 1× John Harbaugh PERSON · 1× New Orleans GPE · 1× Paul Schwartz PERSON · 1× Titans ORG · 1× Wilson PERSON · 1×

Narrative

Indeed, the Giants thus far have been favored in only one game — Week 3 vs. the Titans — even though they defy the odds on a near-weekly basis and at 3-1-1 are alone in first place in the NFC East heading into Sunday’s home game with the Saints.
framing: assertive · carried by 1 article(s) · first seen 2026-10-18
🔮 Even though the Giants hired John Harbaugh, there were not many great expectations for how they would fare this season from outside the building.
2026-10-18 · New York Post
Giants happy to play the underdog role and keep on defying the odds · assertive framing

Claims (24 extracted, 0 hedged)

Even though the Giants hired John Harbaugh, there were not many great expectations for how they would fare this season from outside the building. asserted
they → hire → building
Indeed, the Giants thus far have been favored in only one game — Week 3 vs. the Titans — even though they defy the odds on a near-weekly basis and at 3-1-1 are alone in first place in the NFC East heading into Sunday’s home game with the Saints. asserted
they → favor → Saints
tRY IT NOWThe Saints are 1-4, with three consecutive losses in New Orleans, and yet the Giants are a 1.5-point underdog. asserted
Giants → try → Orleans
“They have a very good offensive team and we’ll be challenged by this offense, but our guys are up to the task and we love playing at MetLife Stadium and being underdogs,’’ defensive coordinator Dennard Wilson said. asserted
Wilson → have → Stadium
“Everybody counts us out,’’ Wilson said. asserted
Wilson → count → us
“We like playing with a chip on our shoulder. asserted
We → play → shoulder
That’s what it is.’’ asserted
it → ’ → ?
The Giants were also underdogs at home to the bottom-dwelling Cardinals. asserted
Giants → dwell → Cardinals
If Malik Nabers gets at least four receptions, he will surpass Puka Nacua for the second-most receptions in his first 25 games in NFL history. asserted
he → get → history
Nacua had 159 catches in his first 25 games. asserted
Nacua → have → games
Nabers has 156 in his first 24 games. asserted
Nabers → have → games
Only Odell Beckham Jr. (176) had more receptions in his first 25 games. asserted
Jr. → have → games
Jermaine Eluemunor (calf) is listed as questionable. asserted
Eluemunor → list → ?
He has not missed a game this season at right tackle but he was forced out last week after 44 snaps, giving way to Marcus Mbow to play the last 45 snaps on offense in the 27-27 tie with the Commanders. asserted
he → miss → Commanders
Mbow, a 2025 fifth-round pick out of Purdue, started three games as a rookie (one at left tackle, two at right tackle) and worked with the starters this past week, which will be beneficial if he has to again sub in for Eluemunor. asserted
he → start → Eluemunor
“It’s a lot more helpful because you’re getting those reps during the week,’’ Mbow told The Post. asserted
Mbow → ’ → Post
“You’re seeing the plays we’re going to be running and getting to go through them and having less hesitation. asserted
we → see → hesitation
There’s definitely a lot more beneficial in situations like that, but I understand how it goes.’’ asserted
it → ’ → that
He got in for five snaps as what offensive coordinator Matt Nagy called “a change of pace’’ look for the opposing defense. asserted
Nagy → get → defense
McCarthy ran the ball twice for negligible returns [2 yards] and threw two passes that were wiped out by penalties. asserted
that → run → penalties
It sounds as if this specialized package is here to stay. asserted
package → sound → ?
“We can’t be predictable with it when we use him and when we’re going to do it, but he needs to stay with it,’’ Nagy said. asserted
Nagy → use → it
The Giants usually activate three tight ends. asserted
Giants → activate → ends
Fidone played 16 special teams snaps last week vs. the Commanders. asserted
Fidone → play → Commanders
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