Up until a week ago, New York Giants’ fans could legitimately say their team was on the road to recovery. The Giants’ last campaign may not have been a roaring success, but five wins was certainly an improvement on the three the previous season. That optimism saw the Giants firm in 2019-20 NFL betting odds – that is, until they did the unthinkable on March 13 and traded Odell Beckham Jr to the Cleveland Browns.
Giants 2019-20 NFL Betting Odds
As you’d expect of a team that just traded away its star player, the New York Giants have slumped in NFL betting odds.
The Giants have slipped to 12th out of 16 teams in NFC Championship betting, and are currently paying around 29.00. Last season’s NFC champs the Los Angeles Rams are the 5.00 co-favorite. Alongside them are the team they beat in the conference championship game, the New Orleans Saints.
In 2019-20 NFL Championship betting, the Giants share the 22nd line with the Tennessee Titans. Both the Giants and Titans are paying 61.00. The AFC’s New England Patriots and Kansas City Chiefs are 8.50 equal favorites in Super Bowl betting.
Odell Beckham Jr. Trade Impact
There are two schools of thoughts concerning the trading of star wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. to the Cleveland Browns.
The obvious conclusion from the Beckham Jr. trade is that the Giants were mad to give up on one of the NFL’s best players. Many view it as a particularly strange move given only seven months had passed since the Giants signed Beckham Jr. to a five-year, $95 million contract extension.
On the other hand, there are those who can see the positives of ending the speculation around OBJ and of paving the way for a full rebuild. In return for Beckham Jr., the Browns sent the Giants the 17th pick in next month’s draft, plus a third rounder and safety Jabrill Peppers.
The Giants now have two first-round draft picks: number 6 and number 17. They can use these picks to fill needs at quarterback, wide receiver, and/or offensive linesman, or even trade away one of the picks for a quality player. Some people are predicting the Giants will draft Kyler Murray as Eli Manning’s successor at QB if the Oklahoma Sooners’ star is somehow still available at pick 6.
Giants Tough Road to Recovery
Once their anger over the Beckham Jr. trade dissipates, New York Giants’ fans may once again have cause for optimism in 2019. ESPN made early NFL predictions for all 32 teams in February, and saw the Giants climbing to at least a 7-9 or 8-8 record. That wouldn’t be enough for the playoffs, of course, but it would signal some significant improvement and lay the ground for an assault on the post-season in 2020 and beyond.
One of the main reasons for ESPNS’ optimism was the likely decline of the Giants’ fierce NFC East rivals, the Dallas Cowboys. The Cowboys finished top of the NFC East with a 10-6 record last season, the equal-lowest win total (with the AFC North’s Baltimore Ravens) of any of the divisional winners. The Giants went 1-5 against their divisional rivals last season, so an extra couple of wins against the Cowboys, Philadelphia Eagles, and Washington Redskins would be enough to see them improve overall.
There’s still a long way to go till the Giants kick off their 2019-20 NFL season in the first week of September. A couple of savvy signings between now and then could again fill Giants’ fans with hope.