The New York Giants played their first season all the way back in 1925. So clearly, they've had a long history in football. Over those years, they are bound to create rivals.
Sometimes the level of hatred varies, but they are still those teams that when fans see on the schedule, they circle the date. And when a franchise is around as long as the Giants, there are bound to be many.
Let's take a look at the Giants' five biggest rivals in team history.
5. New England Patriots
This is the weakest entrance on the list. And still, the New England Patriots deserve to be mentioned.
Before the 2008 Super Bowl, maybe New York wouldn't even be considered a rival with New England. The two regions generally don't love each other when it comes to sports, but that's more of a Jets-Patriots, Yankees-Red Sox issue.
However, the Giants did the impossible that year. The Patriots entered the game undefeated. They went 16-0 in the regular season and were set to become the first team ever to go 19-0 in the sport.
It seemed like there was no way New York (a Wild Card team) was going to stop the lethal Patriots offense. However, the Giants defense stepped up in a big way. There was also David Tyree's drive-saving helmet catch. And the Giants got the win.
New England got a chance to get revenge in the 2012 Super Bowl. Once again the Giants stole the win away.
Although the two teams don't meet often, since the pair of Super Bowl wins for New York, this has become a very real rivalry.
4. New York Jets
The fight for New York means the Jets are naturally one of the Giants' bigger rivals. Like the Patriots (who are in the AFC East with the Jets), they don't meet up with the Giants often.
However, the two teams share a stadium and both teams want to be the dominant team in the city and in the stadium. So they are natural rivals just based on location alone.
It also helps that the fans are in such close quarters. There's nothing quite like walking down the street in a jersey repping a favorite team, and passing someone wearing a rival's jersey.
In New York, that's going to happen quite a bit with these two teams. And that means the insults get to be hurled often.
While it seems trivial, but it definitely adds an extra layer to the heated rivalry between the Jets and the Giants.
3. Washington Redskins
Of course, the Giants' biggest foes are their division-mates in the NFC East. The three teams in the division with them meet twice a year. That makes for some heated rivalries.
The Washington Redskins come in at No. 3. But this is an odd case, as right now this is probably the rivalry with the least amount of juice in the division.
In a few years, we could view the rivalry much differently. The main reason for that: The quarterbacks.
New York took Daniel Jones with the sixth overall pick in the 2019 NFL Draft. Then Washington selected Dwayne Haskins with the 15th overall pick in that same draft.
So there could be a storm brewing. Fans are already arguing over quarterbacks. And both teams are continuing to add a bunch of young and exciting pieces to their respective rosters. This could turn into something much bigger between them soon enough.
As of right now, the Giants are dominating the series, with a 103-69-4 record against the Redskins. Let's see if that trend continues or if Washington can turn it around.
2. Dallas Cowboys
It could be argued that the Dallas Cowboys deserve the top spot when talking about the Giants' biggest rivals. However, they come in second place because of something that's out of New York's hands:
The Cowboys' biggest rivalry is with the Redskins.
Still, there is a ton of history between these two teams. The Giants have the short end of the stick in the history of this rivalry, as Dallas is 68-46-2 against New York. Although, the Giants are 1-0 against the Cowboys in the playoffs, so that counts for something.
Even with that record, there is bad blood between the two franchises. And it's only going to get more heated in upcoming years. All four teams in the NFC East have young quarterbacks with miles of potential. So, everything could get cranked to 11 soon enough.
1. Philadelphia Eagles
One of the most icon moments ever in an NFL game came in a contest between the Philadelphia Eagles and the Giants. Sadly for New York, it was not a play that worked in their favor.
Of course, it's “Miracle at the Meadowlands II” (or the “New Miracle at the New Meadowlands,” but that sounds too wordy).
Back in 2010, down 21 with under eight minutes to play, the Eagles went on a rampage and tied the game.
With 14 seconds left in the still-tied game, the Giants were forced to punt. And Philadelphia's DeSean Jackson would take that punt, fumble it, pick it up and go 60-plus yards to the end zone as time expires to win.
That's not the only big moment in the history of the two teams. But it definitely is one of the defining ones.
New York is 88-86-2 against Philadelphia. An even matchup throughout history, this is the biggest rivalry the Giants have.
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