Playoffs in Year One? A modest goal.

First, a bit of history, since the advent of free agency and expanded wild-card berths:
Head Coach Playoffs Year One?
Reeves ........ Yes
Fassel ......... Yes
Coughlin ...... No
McAdoo ........ Yes
Shurmur ....... No
Judge ....... LOL No
Daboll ....... Yes

And on our new staff:
Harbaugh (BAL) .. Yes
Nagy (CHI) ...... Yes

Of course, the circumstances of each YES are unique. I would argue that's equally true of the NOs, two of which reflect the painful start and ignominious end of the Eli Manning era. Heck, even Joe Judge came within a Philly tank of backing into the playoffs in 2020.

And with the caveat again that every season is different, Harbaugh and an erratic rookie QB came within five minutes and two late turnovers of reaching Super Bowl XLIII.

My expectations for the 2026 Giants are modest. The team is riddled with holes, the staff is new, ownership is a disaster, and depth is a problem everywhere. They need a good off-season and a lot of luck in the fall. On the other hand, the team didn't look any better on paper in 2022. So maybe Harbaugh isn't blowing smoke when he sets the bar at reaching the playoffs.