The New England Patriots, crowned AFC Champions, are inspiring the New York Giants with the possibility of a swift revival under the leadership of new head coach John Harbaugh.
The Patriots made an impressive comeback from a disappointing 4-13 record in 2024, advancing to Super Bowl LX just a year later.
This remarkable turnaround was largely attributed to strategic changes, including the appointment of Mike Vrabel as head coach after Jerod Mayo was dismissed. Additionally, the return of Josh McDaniels as offensive coordinator and the rapid development of first-round pick quarterback Drake Maye, who emerged as an MVP contender in his sophomore season, were key factors.
The Giants are taking solace in the Patriots’ journey, hopeful that their own path back to competitiveness, following a challenging 7-27 run over the past two seasons, won’t be a long one and might even occur swiftly.
One year after the Patriots’ facelift, the Giants also have hired a respected head coach in Harbaugh to replace the fired Brian Daboll, and they are excited about first-round quarterback Jaxson Dart’s growth in his second season under new offensive coordinator Matt Nagy.
As the NFL free agency period unofficially kicks off this Monday, it’s crucial to recognize a significant difference between the 2025 Patriots and the 2026 Giants: the availability of salary cap space.
This financial flexibility could be pivotal in acquiring an influx of new talent to bolster the Giants’ roster.
The Patriots held the most cap space in the entire league, more than $110 million, when Vrabel took over the team last year. On top of holding the No. 4 overall pick to draft offensive tackle Will Campbell.
This year’s Giants by contrast were $300,000 over the cap in effective cap space as of 2 p.m. Friday, which ranked 26th out of the NFL’s 32 teams. That means there were 25 teams with more money available to upgrade their teams once the NFL factors in the salaries of each club’s draft classes this coming April.
So they hold the No. 5 pick in the draft but have the salary cap of a team that should have been in the playoffs.
This does not mean the Giants won’t upgrade their team in the coming days. They will.
Friday’s decision to retain running back Devin Singletary on a pay cut to reduce his $6.5 million scheduled cap hit is one example of how they will be able to fit new pieces: By adjusting contracts of incumbent players.
Linebacker Bobby Okereke’s release this week to save $9 million was done to accomplish the same thing (perhaps Singletary is sticking around in case Cam Skattebo’s rehab takes some time).
Senior vice president Dawn Aponte, who is now running the salary cap, can get more creative than the Giants have in the past to fit in contracts, too.
Expect Harbaugh to pursue a starting corner, an offensive guard and an inside linebacker at the very least — in addition to upgrades or reinforcements at the skill positions and in the kicking game.
He would do well to attack the interior defensive line’s talent and depth next to Dexter Lawrence, as well.
Not having significant cap space does mean, though, that doing a 180-degree turnaround like the Patriots feels like an unrealistic expectation for this year’s Giants team.
The Patriots used last year’s cap space to sign star defensive tackle Milton Williams, who became their best defensive player, and wide receiver Stefon Diggs, who became Maye’s top receiver. They signed veterans corner Carlton Davis II and offensive tackle Morgan Moses.
They inked linebackers Robert Spillane and Jack Gibbens and re-signed linebacker Christian Elliss. They added edges K’Lavon Chaisson and Harold Landry. They brought in wideout Mack Hollins.
This wasn’t just pulling off the wallpaper and repainting the house. This was closer to knocking down the old one and building new.
The Giants aren’t in position to do this in part because of last year’s free agent spending by GM Joe Schoen.
Starting corner Paulson Adebo $24.1 million (second-highest cap hit on team), starting safety Jevon Holland $18.5 million (fifth), starting receiver Darius Slayton $15.9 million (sixth), backup offensive tackle James Hudson $7.6 million (11th) and backup defensive lineman Chauncey Golston $6.9 million (12th) all carry significant cap charges in 2026.
The team could save more than $5 million by cutting Hudson, and those players maybe will play better in 2026. But that’s a ton invested in a group of players that did not deliver results in 2025 and is largely locked in for this season.
As Harbaugh’s pursuit of Chiefs corner Trent McDuffie demonstrated, however, although the Rams beat the Giants out for that player, the Giants are also engaging in the trade market.
Edge rusher Kavyon Thibodeaux could be a valuable piece for this Giants roster in 2026 if he sticks around. But trading him also would clear the $14.7 million cap hit of his fifth-year option off the books entirely.
So there is a chance he could be traded, perhaps in a player-for-player and picks deal, to help Harbaugh clean up the books while also upgrading a more glaring weakness elsewhere.
Whatever the Giants do, they’re going to have to get creative. And they’re going to have to keep an eye on the long-term.
Because Harbaugh’s immediate charge is to make the Giants a more difficult team to play against. But in the big picture, he is here to make them annual contenders again. And that usually takes time.
The Patriots had the resources to do it quickly. The Giants might require a little more patience.
