NFL futures picks: Playoff odds and predictions for New York Giants

New York City has been the center of the NFL’s offseason due to the Jets’ trade for future Hall of Famer Aaron Rodgers.

Gang Green have Super Bowl aspirations this season, and though that sounds crazy to say, oddsmakers agree.

The Jets have the sixth shortest odds to win the Super Bowl at both FanDuel and BetMGM.

They are -160 to make the playoffs, something they haven’t done since 2010.

With all the hype surrounding the Jets and Buffalo Bills, the other New York team is flying under the radar.

The Giants finished 9-7-1 in head coach Brian Daboll’s first season and won a road playoff game over the Minnesota Vikings.

If you told Giants fans last August that’s how the season was going to unfold, they would have run to sign up for it.

You would think an impressive rookie campaign under Daboll, in which quarterback Daniel Jones took a big step forward, might have people predicting big things from the G-Men in 2023.

But that’s not the case.

Looking at the Giants’ future odds, it’s clear that sportsbooks are expecting a step back from them this season.

The Giants are +140 to make the playoffs, +600 to win the NFC East and 50/1 to win the Super Bowl at BetMGM.

To put that in perspective, last June the Giants were +700 to win the NFC East coming off a 4-13 record with a first-time head coach.

So why aren’t the Giants getting much love this offseason? I see two reasons.

First, many believe they were lucky in 2022 and to be fair, the ball did bounce their way a few times.

The Giants won eight games by eight points or fewer and finished +3 in turnover differential.

The other reason is a lot of people still aren’t ready to buy into Jones.

Despite a season in which he accounted for 3,913 total yards and 22 touchdowns with just six turnovers, the majority opinion is the Giants won by protecting their quarterback, not because of their quarterback.

I understand why both of those factors have many doubting the Giants’ success last season.

I’m on the other end of the spectrum, however.

I believe the G-Men are a team to watch in a watered-down NFC.

Betting on the NFL?

I see value in taking them +140 to make the playoffs.

In May 2022, I wrote that I liked the Giants to make the playoffs at +225, and most of the replies were simply “LOL.”

My reasoning last year, and again this season, is that the Giants went from one of the worst coaching staffs in 2021 to one of the best by hiring Daboll and defensive coordinator Wink Martindale.

While you can argue the Giants were lucky to win a lot of close games, I’d counter that good coaching was the deciding factor.

I thought Daboll simply outcoached a lot of his counterparts last year.

Many NFL games come down to the fourth quarter, in which coaching and quarterback play are ultimately the difference.

I’m also in the minority on Jones. Listen, is he Patrick Mahomes? Of course not.

But Jones showed enough improvement last season without many weapons around him for me to believe his development will continue under Daboll.

The X factor for the Giants is new tight end Darren Waller.

If Waller is healthy and plays close to as well as he did with the Raiders, look for Jones’ production to improve across the board.

The AFC is loaded right now, but the NFC looks wide open outside of the Eagles and 49ers.

I expect the Giants to be very much in the postseason picture once again.

I make the G-Men closer to even money to make the playoffs, so I’ll gladly take +140.

Jets fans can wait for their Super Bowl parade.

We just need to grab the final playoff spot in the NFC to cash our bet.