New-Look Giants Defense Could Spur Quick Rebound in NFC East

When talk turns to the New York Giants, the conversation usually centers on quarterback Eli Manning and wide receiver Odell Beckham.

However, if the Giants are going to end their postseason drought and get back in the playoffs for the first time since winning Super Bowl XLVII, substantial improvement by a defense that finished 2015 dead last in the NFL is a must.

General manager Jerry Reese went on a massive spending spree in the offseason in an effort to spur just such a turnaround. If early returns are any indication, it may have been money well spent.

Granted, it’s important not to read too much into less than 10 snaps played in a game that doesn’t count. But the Giants’ preseason opener against the Miami Dolphins featured some impressive play from the Giants’ new-look defense.

The Dolphins first team failed to secure a first down. In fact, the Miami starters failed to do much of anything. Whether it was clogging running lanes or pressuring quarterback Ryan Tannehill, a revamped defensive line featuring new faces in end Olivier Vernon and tackle Damon Harrison dominated the line of scrimmage.

As Tara Sullivan of the North Jersey Record reported, second-year safety Landon Collins quipped he was getting a little lonely at the back end of the defense. “It got kind of boring back there [in the secondary],” Collins said. “When you have a line like that, your job’s easy. All you really do is look for the pass. Let them try to make plays.”

The former Alabama standout went on to say that he and his teammates came into the game wanting to send a message: The Giants are pushovers no more.

“We came to prove a point. We have a chip on our shoulders, so by doing so, we came to shut down whoever we played against. That’s our move, that’s our aggression, and that’s what we’re going to put on the field,” he said.

It’s certainly a contrast with last year, when to say that the Giants had a tissue-paper defense would be insulting—to tissue paper.

The 2015 Giants allowed over 420 yards per game. That was nearly 140 more yards per game than the league-leading Broncos gave up. In addition to ranking dead last in total defense the Giants ranked 32nd against the pass. Only two teams allowed more points per game or accrued fewer sacks.

Simply put, you aren’t sniffing the playoffs if your defense can’t stop anyone. It’s awfully difficult to hold a lead if your secondary and pass rush are among the worst in the league.

Reese went hard at that side of the ball from the moment free agency opened, possibly because he knows as well as we do that if the Giants don’t get better quick he’ll be following Tom Coughlin out the door.

The Giants dropped over $100 million in guaranteed money in the contracts for Vernon, Harrison and cornerback Janoris Jenkins alone. They also brought back defensive end Jason Pierre-Paul on a one-year, $10 million pact. Say what you will about huge free-agent spending sprees, but you can’t accuse Reese of sitting on his hands.

That …

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