Arizona Cardinals-New York Giants
USA - NFL
The Arizona Cardinals entered the season as by far the weakest team in the NFL this year. Some went so far as to predict a 0-17 record for them. Their goal is more than obvious. They want the first pick in the next draft, and barring a miracle, they will succeed. Simply put, they are in full tank mode. However, in Week 1, they played a competitive game on the road against the Washington Commanders. They lost by 20:16, even though they had a 10:16 lead at the beginning of the fourth quarter. The reason was not their brilliant play but rather the opponent's mistakes, although the defense at times showed the mark of their new head coach, Jonathan Gannon.
The New York Giants suffered one of the biggest debacles in the 98-year history of this franchise last week. They were demolished by the Dallas Cowboys 0:40 in primetime on their home turf. Everything that could go wrong went wrong, and no one in their wildest dreams expected such an outcome. The Giants were one of the biggest surprises in the NFL last year. They made the playoffs for the first time in six years, and Brian Daboll was selected as the league's best coach. Saquon Barkley stayed with the team, Darren Waller was signed as a reinforcement at tight end, and all of that was supposed to mean that this team would pick up where they left off nine months ago. However, the shocking defeat will definitely leave a mark, meaning we will see the true face of this franchise on Sunday night.
In the Week 3, they will visit the San Francisco 49ers, the best team in the NFC, which means that a potential loss here could lead them to 0-3. From there, it's almost impossible to secure a playoff spot.
Occasionally, things go horribly wrong for a team in the NFL, as was the case with the Giants last week. The result against the Cowboys definitely does not realistically reflect the entire situation. They have a vastly better team than the Cardinals, a better head coach, and coaching staff. Moreover, it's needless to say how much motivation they will have to redeem themselves for what happened at their stadium last Sunday night. The offensive line embarrassed themselves the most in that game, but luckily for them, the Cardinals' defensive line might be the worst in the entire league, which means Daniel Jones shouldn't be under immense pressure. Certainly not even close to last week. It is expected that the Giants will start focused and strong right from the beginning and secure a clear win.