Are the Giants a safe bet in Week 17?

2016 New York Giants Season Win Total Prediction

Written by on July 22, 2016

The New York Giants have one of the better quarterbacks in the NFL in Eli Manning and the league’s most electrifying receiver in Odell Beckham Jr. So why did the G-Men finish just 6-10 in 2015? Because their defense was atrocious. New York has a wins total of 8 in NFL betting for this year.

Analysis on the 2016 New York Giants Season Win Total Prediction

Total Win/Loss Odds Overview

All eyes are on Jason Pierre-Paul and Victor Cruz as camp begins. The Giants carry many question marks as they try to finish at .500 or better for the first time since 2012, but health has been their biggest issue in recent years. New York starts the season for the first time in many years without Coach Tom Coughlin. New York appointed offensive coordinator Ben McAdoo to replace Coughlin, who won two Super Bowls in 12 years with New York. McAdoo, 38, becomes the second-youngest head coach in the league. When he came to the Giants in 2014, the team was coming off a season in which it ranked 28th in total offense. In 2014, the Giants rose to 10th. Last year, they were eighth.

Why Betting On The Over?

The Giants were embarrassed on defense a year ago. Last in the league in yards allowed; 30th in sacks; Last in passing yards allowed per game and 29th in passing yards allowed per play; 31st in first downs allowed per game; Last in third-down percentage; 30th in points allowed per game. The Giants allowed 420.3 total yards and 298.9 passing yards per game. Opponents scored 27.6 points per game against them, and New York managed 23 sacks (both the 29th-worst rankings). They were third-worst in the league in adjusted sack rate and left opposing quarterbacks 2.58 seconds to throw before their average pass, which was fifth-worst in the NFL. The Giants were 18th in pressure percentage. A defensive line that was devoid of dynamic play-makers was largely to blame, and the Giants spent massively to fix that. They signed free agents Olivier Vernon, Damon “Snacks” Harrison, Johnathan Hankins and re-signed Pierre-Paul. The team also took Ohio State cornerback Eli Apple with its first-round pick. So the unit can only be better, right? Meanwhile, Odell Beckham Jr. showed everyone that he is now the top wide receiver in the NFL. With 96 receptions, 1,450 yards and 13 scores, Beckham has set the new standard of an elite wide receiver. No player in NFL history has caught for yards (2,755) in their first two seasons. Manning had a Pro Bowl season, throwing for 4,432 yards and 35 touchdowns to just 14 interceptions. In 2015, the Giants finished No. 6 in scoring and No. 8 in total yards.

Why Betting On The Under?

The offensive line might not give Manning much time to find Beckham. The team cut oft-injured veterans Geoff Schwartz and Will Beatty this offseason and never really replaced them. New York didn’t draft an offensive lineman and added only Byron Stingily, who bounced around the Pittsburgh and Tennessee practice squads last season. As a result, John Jerry and Marshall Newhouse — who were both terrible bad last season — will be pressed into starting roles on the right side of the line. As starters, Newhouse and Jerry have proven to be overexposed. They consistently rank near the bottom of Pro Football Focus' rankings, with Jerry struggling as a run blocker and Newhouse as a pass protector. The Giants tried to find replacements in the starting lineup for one or both via free agency and the draft. Neither panned out. The Giants had interest in several free agent guards, most notably Jeff Allen, but he chose Houston. If things had unfolded differently in the draft, they would’ve selected Michigan State offensive tackle Jack Conklin with the 10th overall pick but he was snapped up at No. 8. Instead, the team has two below-average options on the right side of their line with little to no experience behind them. The nine reserve offensive linemen on the roster have a combined 13 career starts.

My Betting Prediction

This is my early NFC East champion. Go over the total in mobile NFL betting.