Coming fresh off an 11–5 season, the Giants hoped to win a Super Bowl and were expected to be playoff contenders by many critics.

By Week 10, after losing to the previously winless San Francisco 49ers, the Giants were standing at 1–8, their worst record since 1980.

The Giants were eliminated from playoff contention on November 26 with wins by the Atlanta Falcons, Carolina Panthers, and Seattle Seahawks, three days after their own loss to the Washington Redskins.

It started controversy, with present and former teammates, opponents, fans, executives, and television and radio show hosts coming to Manning's defense.

Trailing 14–0 entering the 4th quarter, the Giants mounted a huge rally scoring three touchdowns on three consecutive drives, taking a 21–14 lead.

However, their rally was overshadowed by rookie kicker Jake Elliott when he kicked a game winning 61-yard field goal to drop the Giants to 0–3 and their fourth straight loss in Philadelphia.

The Giants suffered a ton of injuries throughout the game including star wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr.

Janoris Jenkins returned a Trevor Siemian interception for a touchdown in the win, his first as a member of the Giants, and the defense had a goal line stand early in the 4th quarter to seal the game.

They could not be saved by their weak wide receiving corps, along with a struggling run game that sealed their fate.

After the game, media outlets and sports reporters questioned the efforts of several players, and speculated head coach Ben McAdoo was on the hot seat for losing the Giants locker room.

Despite all the miscues, Eli Manning became the seventh quarterback in NFL history to reach 50,000 career passing yards.

Attempting to stop a 3-game losing streak, the Giants returned home to host the Kansas City Chiefs led by Alex Smith and Kareem Hunt.

As he would be benched the next week, Eli Manning's streak of 210 consecutive starts by a quarterback ended 2nd in NFL history and is currently 3rd, having since been passed by Philip Rivers.

A Seattle Seahawks win over the San Francisco 49ers three days later eliminated the Giants from playoff contention.

For the first time since 2004, Eli Manning did not start the game and was benched in favor of Geno Smith in a move that was universally panned by the football community.

The following day, the Giants announced that head coach Ben McAdoo and general manager Jerry Reese had been fired.

Defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo took over as the interim head coach and immediately reinstated Manning as the Giants quarterback.

With a Washington Redskins' 20–15 win over the Arizona Cardinals, the Giants secured a fourth place finish in the NFC East for the first time since 2003.

Shutout for the first time since 2014, the Giants offense could not get into the end zone and their only chance at points came on a missed field goal by Aldrick Rosas.

In his final game with the Redskins, Kirk Cousins was intercepted and sacked three times each against the Giants defense.