Game Of Throws: Giants a popular pick to surprise this NFL Season

Confession time. The first National Football League game that I watched from start to finish was Super Bowl 36.

All season my dad kept talking about how this underdog team called the New England Patriots kept winning with a second-string quarterback named Tom Brady.

By the time February 2002 rolled around I was all-in on this quarterback and team that seemingly came out of nowhere to reach the Super Bowl.

The stage was set for a big letdown. I was a high school kid that was more interested in playing Madden than sitting through a three-hour NFL broadcast, and the Patriots were a 14.5-point underdog against the mighty Los Angeles Rams.

New England would probably lose the game, but my dad bet them to cover the 14.5, and he promised me that if they won or lost by 14 points or less, he would buy me a Brady jersey.

The rest is history.

The Patriots beat the Rams in the Super Bowl, +14.5 was never a sweat, and that Brady jersey became a lucky charm as New England forged a dynasty that was still going when I landed my first job here at TSN.

The Brady era was unforgettable for Patriots fans.

New England won six Super Bowls from 2002 to 2019.

They might have won eight if it wasn’t for Eli Manning and the New York Giants. Manning led the Giants to upset wins over the Patriots in Super Bowl 42 and Super Bowl 46.

Those losses would still haunt me if New England didn’t go on to win three more Super Bowls after that.

Now more than two decades after I watched my first NFL game, I’m about to do something that I would have told you was unthinkable for several years from 2008 to 2024. I bet on the Giants to have a positive outcome.

Apparently, I’m not the only one who thinks they will be better expected this season, either.

I parlayed the Giants over 4.5 regular season wins with the New Orleans Saints to stay under 6.5 regular season wins.

I might have bet New York over 5.5 regular season wins at -110, but as a Patriots fan there are still limits on how much I want to see this team succeed.

Anyways, the Giants are in the middle of a rebuild after their disastrous 2024 season ended with a 3-14 record.

However, they drafted the obvious AP NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year favourite Abdul Carter with the third overall pick.

Carter joins Brian Burns, Dexter Lawrence, Kayvon Thibodeaux, and Roy Robertson-Harrison in a front-seven that has the potential to remind fans of the group that led New York to Super Bowl wins over Brady and the Pats.

The Giants also added Canadian safety Jevon Holland and cornerback Paulson Adebo to anchor a secondary that could benefit from the pressure generated up front. Meanwhile, New York drafted quarterback Jaxson Dart with the 25th overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft.

While Dart has the potential to be a legitimate starter, the plan is to let him learn and develop behind veterans Russell Wilson and Jameis Winston.

If the new QB room provides even a moderate upgrade over what Daniel Jones did last season, it might be enough for the Giants to improve their win total by two or three wins.

Second-year wide receiver Malik Nabers has the potential to be special, while Wan’Dale Robinson, Darius Slayton, Theo Johnson are all capable contributors.

New York also drafted running back Cam Skattebo in the in the fourth round.

He’ll slide in behind Tyrone Tracy Jr. and Devin Singletary on the depth chart with the potential to grow.

The Giants face a brutal early schedule, but if they could find a way to upset either the Washington Commanders or the Dallas Cowboys early, they would only need four more wins over their final 15 games to get to five.

The betting public seems confident that will happen.

Per the FanDuel traders, the Giants are the most popular bet of any team in their make the playoffs market.

A big part of that equation is the fact that New York is +880 to reach the postseason.

At the same time, you don’t make that bet unless you believe it has a chance to cash.

Meanwhile, the FanDuel traders also told us that more than 70 per cent of the bets are on the Giants to go over 5.5 regular season wins.

With head coach Brian Daboll coaching for his job, and a pair of veteran QBs looking to prove they can still perform at a high level, it wouldn’t be a major surprise if New York improved its win total by two or three wins.

At the same time, a brutal early schedule could lead to things going south in a hurry, Daboll being fired, and the Giants auditioning the rookie Dart the rest of the way.

I’m willing to roll the dice on the two-team parlay with New York over 4.5 regular season wins and New Orleans under 6.5 regular season wins at -114 at FanDuel.

The worst-case scenario is I lose some coffee money but get to enjoy watching Giants fans be disappointed.

That’s not a bad hedge for a Patriots fan.