Why Russell Wilson could be New York Giants' key to avoiding another lost season

Yahoo

4 hours ago

After years of subpar quarterback play, the New York Giants believed they resolved this issue when they signed Russell Wilson to a one-year contract in March.
No other position is more important than quarterback, and perhaps no team has upgraded its quarterback position more this season than the Giants. The team firmly believes that the 36-year-old Wilson will help them win many of the one-score games they've lost in the past.
Advertisement
However, despite being led by a 10-time Pro Bowler, many outside the organization expect the team to finish last in the NFC East and have another double-digit losing season. But perhaps they're undervaluing the upgrade that Wilson brings to the position.
Here's why people shouldn't undervalue the future Hall of Fame quarterback being the team's new starter.
Fourth-best career TD-to-INT ratio in NFL history
Credit: Chris Pedota, NorthJersey.com / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
One of the biggest reasons for New York's struggles over the last several seasons was Daniel Jones' poor touchdown-to-interception ratio. During his time with the Giants, Jones threw 70 touchdowns with 47 interceptions.
Advertisement
Wilson, on the other hand, has one of the best touchdown-to-interception ratios in NFL history, having thrown 350 touchdowns to just 111 interceptions. His 3.15 touchdown-to-interception ratio is the fourth-highest in NFL history. He's never thrown more than 13 interceptions in a season, and in eight of his 13 seasons, he's had single-digit interceptions, including his last two seasons with the Denver Broncos and Pittsburgh Steelers.
When a team lacks talent at several positions, as the Giants have over the last few seasons, it's nearly impossible to overcome losing the turnover battle. With the upgrades that general manager Joe Schoen has made to the roster this offseason, in addition to Wilson, fans should have optimism that the team can be one of the surprise teams in the league this year.
Wilson shows no signs of slowing down
Credit: Chris Pedota, NorthJersey.com / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
Some may not think Wilson being the team's new starting quarterback is significant because he'll turn 37 in November. However, despite entering his 14th year in the league, he has shown no signs of slowing down.
Advertisement
In 2024 with the Steelers, he completed 63.7 percent of his passes while throwing for 2,482 yards and 16 touchdowns with just five interceptions in 11 games. In contrast, New York quarterbacks last season completed 61.9% of their passes while throwing for 3,521 yards with 15 touchdowns and 13 interceptions in 17 games.
By his standards, that might be considered a down year for Wilson, but he finished 14th in passing rating at 95.6. He's never posted a quarterback rating under 84.4, evidenced by the fact that he's been voted to the Pro Bowl in 10 of his 13 seasons.
Although he'll be playing for his third different team in three seasons, there's no reason to believe he'll have a down year in 2025 when he'll be throwing to Malik Nabers, who is more talented than any receiver Wilson has played with in recent years. In addition, he'll be playing in Brian Daboll's offense, which caters to Wilson's athletic ability and should make him more efficient this year.
Wilson and the team will get a chance to prove their doubters wrong beginning in Week 1, but during Tuesday's media session, the veteran quarterback was asked if he's a better athlete when he has something to prove to people.
Advertisement
'I think you're always just trying to prove yourself right. I know what I'm capable of every day. I never lack confidence,' Wilson said.
We'll get to see more of what Wilson and the Giants offense are capable of when the team reports to training camp at the end of July.
Related Headlines