The 2021 season was the New York Giants' 97th season in the National Football League (NFL) and their second and final under head coach Joe Judge. They failed to improve on their 6–10 output from the previous season and missed the postseason for the fifth consecutive year after a Week 16 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles.

Following the season, general manager Dave Gettleman announced his retirement and head coach Joe Judge was fired.

Offseason

Free agents PositionPlayer2021 TeamDate SignedContractWRC. J. BoardNew York GiantsMarch 17, 20211 year, $850,000FSAdrian ColbertNew England PatriotsMay 20, 2021LBDevante DownsNew York GiantsMarch 19, 2021SNate EbnerLBKyler FackrellLos Angeles ChargersMarch 24, 20211 year, $1.5 millionOTCameron FlemingDenver BroncosMay 20, 20211 year, $1.67 millionRBWayne GallmanSan Francisco 49ersApril 21, 20211 year, $990,000NTAustin JohnsonNew York GiantsMarch 16, 20211 year, $3 millionLSCasey KreiterNew York GiantsMarch 17, 20211 year, $1.127 millionRBDion LewisNew York Giants August 31, 2021LBDavid MayoWashington Football TeamMarch 18, 20211 year, $990,000QBColt McCoyArizona CardinalsMarch 30, 20211 year, $1.212 millionRBAlfred MorrisNew York GiantsAugust 2, 2021CSpencer PulleyLBJabaal SheardNTDalvin TomlinsonMinnesota VikingsMarch 19, 20212 years, $22 millionDELeonard WilliamsNew York GiantsMarch 18, 20213 years, $63 million Player re-signed by the Giants Player not re-signed by the Giants

Signings PositionPlayerAge2020 TeamContractRBDevontae Booker28Oakland Raiders2 years, $5.5 millionQBMike Glennon31Jacksonville Jaguars1 year, $1.35 millionOLBIfeadi Odenigbo26Minnesota Vikings1 year, $2.5 millionWRJohn Ross 26Cincinnati Bengals1 year, $2.5 millionFBCullen Gillaspia25Houston Texans1 year, $850,000ILBReggie Ragland27Detroit Lions1 year, $1.127 millionWRKenny Golladay28Detroit Lions4 years, $72 millionCBAdoree' Jackson25Tennessee Titans3 years, $39 millionOLBRyan Anderson26Washington Football Team1 year, $1.12 millionTEKyle Rudolph31Minnesota Vikings2 years $12 millionGZach Fulton29Houston Texans1 year, $1.2 millionNTDanny Shelton27Detroit Lions1 year, $1.12 millionTECole Hikutini26Dallas Cowboys1 yearSJoshua Kalu25Tennessee Titans1 yearCBChristopher Milton28Tennessee Titans1 year, $990,000RBCorey Clement26Philadelphia Eagles1 yearWRKelvin Benjamin30Kansas City Chiefs (2018)1 yearRBRyquell Armstead24Jacksonville Jaguars2 years, $1.82 million

Draft

2021 New York Giants Draft Round Selection Player Position College 1 20 Kadarius Toney WR Florida 2 50 Azeez Ojulari LB Georgia 3 71 Aaron Robinson CB UCF 4 116 Elerson Smith LB Northern Iowa 6 196 Gary Brightwell RB Arizona 201 Rodarius Williams CB Oklahoma State

Undrafted free agents PlayerPositionCollegeBrett HeggieOLFloridaJake BurtonOLBaylorRaymond JohnsonDEGeorgia Southern

Staff

Final roster <noinclude>

Preseason Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue Recap 1 New York Jets L 7–12 0–1 MetLife Stadium Recap 2 August 22 at Cleveland Browns L 13–17 0–2 FirstEnergy Stadium Recap 3 August 29 New England Patriots L 20–22 0–3 MetLife Stadium Recap

Regular season Schedule The schedule was announced on May 12.

Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue Recap 1 September 12 Denver Broncos L 13–27 0–1 MetLife Stadium Recap 2 at Washington Football Team L 29–30 0–2 FedExField Recap 3 September 26 Atlanta Falcons L 14–17 0–3 MetLife Stadium Recap 4 October 3 at New Orleans Saints W 27–21 1–3 Caesars Superdome Recap 5 October 10 at Dallas Cowboys L 20–44 1–4 AT&T Stadium Recap 6 October 17 Los Angeles Rams L 11–38 1–5 MetLife Stadium Recap 7 October 24 Carolina Panthers W 25–3 2–5 MetLife Stadium Recap 8 at Kansas City Chiefs L 17–20 2–6 Arrowhead Stadium Recap 9 November 7 Las Vegas Raiders W 23–16 3–6 MetLife Stadium Recap 10 Bye 11 at Tampa Bay Buccaneers L 10–30 3–7 Raymond James Stadium Recap 12 November 28 Philadelphia Eagles W 13–7 4–7 MetLife Stadium Recap 13 December 5 at Miami Dolphins L 9–20 4–8 Hard Rock Stadium Recap 14 December 12 at Los Angeles Chargers L 21–37 4–9 SoFi Stadium Recap 15 December 19 Dallas Cowboys L 6–21 4–10 MetLife Stadium Recap 16 December 26 at Philadelphia Eagles L 10–34 4–11 Lincoln Financial Field Recap 17 January 2 at Chicago Bears L 3–29 4–12 Soldier Field Recap 18 January 9 Washington Football Team L 7–22 4–13 MetLife Stadium Recap Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.

Game summaries Week 1: vs. Denver Broncos

Former Giants head coach turned Broncos offensive coordinator Pat Shurmur returned to MetLife Stadium with Teddy Bridgewater in his first start with the team.

With 2:41 left in the second quarter and the Giants leading 7–3, their offense gave the Broncos the ball and didn't get back on the field until they were trailing 17–7. On the ensuing drive Daniel Jones had a key fumble giving the ball back to Denver, who then kicked a field goal to make it 20–7. Broncos running back Melvin Gordon later broke through with a 70-yard touchdown run, sealing the win for Denver. Shurmur won his revenge game, and the Giants were 0–1 for the fifth consecutive year and eighth time in nine years.

Week 2: at Washington Football Team

Despite a strong performance by Daniel Jones and scoring their season high in points, the Giants were plagued by miscues; a Jones touchdown run nullified by a holding penalty, a wide open touchdown drop by Darius Slayton, and finally an offside penalty by Dexter Lawrence during a missed field goal on the final play of the game, which gave Washington another chance. The Giants dropped to 0–2 for the fifth consecutive year and eighth time in nine years, and broke a five-game winning streak against Washington, losing to them for the first time since 2018. The next day, it was revealed that Lawrence was not offside and in fact jumped when the ball was snapped. The Giants also lost starting center and team captain Nick Gates for the season to a gruesome leg injury.

Week 3: vs. Atlanta Falcons

The Giants retired Eli Manning's number 10 at halftime. His first career start in 2004 and only home playoff win in 2011 were both against the Falcons.

With 5:07 to go and a 14–7 lead, new cornerback Adoree Jackson dropped a possible game sealing interception in the end zone, and the Falcons tied the score 2 plays later on a touchdown pass to Olamide Zaccheaus. The Giants got the ball to midfield only to punt it away, and Falcons Pro Bowl kicker Younghoe Koo capped off a 6-play, 59-yard drive with a game-winning 41-yard field goal. For the second time in as many games, the Giants dropped potential game winning passes and lost on the last play of the game. The Giants were dealt another blow after the game when they learned linebacker and captain Blake Martinez suffered a torn ACL and would miss the remainder of the season.

Week 4: at New Orleans Saints

The Giants appeared all but down and out after two Taysom Hill rushing touchdowns for the Saints. After a 26-yard punt return, Daniel Jones and Saquon Barkley gave the Giants new life on a 56-yard touchdown catch and run, and a 2-point conversion to make it a 21–18 game with 6:52 to play. After a defensive stop, Jones led the Giants on a game-tying drive forcing overtime. The Giants won the toss and immediately scored a touchdown on a 6-yard run by Barkley, winning their first game of the season and stunning the Saints fans in the Superdome.

For his performance, Daniel Jones was selected as the NFC Player of the Week.

Week 5: at Dallas Cowboys

An already depleted Giants squad lost Saquon Barkley, Daniel Jones, and Kenny Golladay in the first half. A bright spot for the Giants was the breakout game for Kadarius Toney, who finished with 10 receptions for 189 yards. Despite the performance, Toney was ejected for punching a Cowboys defender in a skirmish late in the 4th quarter.

Week 6: vs. Los Angeles Rams

In a Scorigami game where the Giants honored the 2011 championship team at halftime, they were down 28–3 after surrendering four 2nd quarter touchdowns. Daniel Jones, who cleared concussion protocol to start the game, threw for 3 interceptions.

Rookie Kadarius Toney suffered an ankle injury on the Giants opening drive and did not return to the game.

Week 7: vs. Carolina Panthers

The Giants won their second game of the season with dominant defensive play, holding the Panthers to 173 total yards, and benching quarterback Sam Darnold. After surrendering an opening drive field goal, they only allowed 7 first downs over the next 11 drives, 8 of which ended three-and-out. They also totaled a safety, interception, and 6 sacks.

Daniel Jones finished with 247 all purpose yards, including a 16-yard one-handed catch from wide receiver Dante Pettis in the 3rd quarter.

It was later announced that captain and starting safety Jabrill Peppers tore his ACL in the contest and would miss the remainder of the season. He signed with the New England Patriots in the offseason.

Week 8: at Kansas City Chiefs

Both teams played a sloppy and undisciplined game on a cold night in Kansas City. The Chiefs opened up with a 13 play drive only to be intercepted at the goal line. However, Daniel Jones threw a pick two plays later and Tyreek Hill opened the scoring for the Chiefs. The Giants managed to make some stops on defense and made the game competitive with a couple of scoring drives, including Kyle Rudolph's first touchdown with the Giants. Evan Engram scored his first touchdown of the season in the fourth quarter to give the Giants the lead, and the Chiefs tied it with a field goal of their own.

Throughout the game, penalties and clock mismanagement became an issue, especially for the Giants in the 4th quarter. In a 17–17 tie game, fullback Elijhaa Penny had a controversial taunting penalty nullify yardage gained from a first down, and a Patrick Mahomes interception on the next drive was nullified by an offsides penalty from Oshane Ximines. The Chiefs took advantage winding down the clock and kicking a game-winning field goal with 1:07 to play. The Giants didn't have any timeouts and couldn't muster much of an opportunity to extend the game. With the loss, the Giants fell to 2–6 or worse for the 5th consecutive year.

Week 9: vs. Las Vegas Raiders

Evan Engram scored a 30-yard touchdown on the Giants opening drive, and Hunter Renfrow responded in kind for the Raiders. After a Daniel Jones fumble in his own end, the Raiders kicked a field goal to lead 10–7. Both teams traded another set of field goals and the Raiders had a 13–10 halftime lead.

On the opening drive of the second half, Raiders quarterback Derek Carr was intercepted by Xavier McKinney who scored a touchdown to make it 17–13 Giants. After trading another set of field goals, the Raiders subsequent red zone drive in the 4th quarter was cut short by a 25-yard missed field goal by Raiders kicker Daniel Carlson. McKinney recorded a second interception, and the Giants kicked a field goal after forcing the Raiders to burn their timeouts and led 23–16 for the final drive. Carr marched the Raiders down the field and into the red zone, but was strip-sacked by rookie Quincy Roche, his first in the NFL, which was recovered by Leonard Williams to seal the victory for the Giants. The Raiders outgained the Giants 403–245 in yards and 24–16 in first downs, but the Raiders were 1–6 in the red zone.

The Giants improved to 3–6 with this win heading into their bye week. For his performance, Xavier McKinney was honored as the NFC Defensive Player of the Week.

Week 11: at Tampa Bay Buccaneers