Damon Harrison

Eli Manning says the Giants are 'definitely' a playoff team

Published Jul. 7, 2016 10:33 a.m. ET

Cameron DaSilva

The New York Giants haven't made the postseason since 2011 when they won the Super Bowl. In fact, they've only reached the playoffs twice in the last eight years. New York is coming off of back-to-back 6-10 seasons and will have a new coach on the sidelines in 2016.

Will Ben McAdoo and company be able to turn the team around and bring Big Blue back to the playoffs? He certainly has the personnel to do so, and Eli Manning believes it'll happen.

That's exactly what the Giants couldn't do last season. They blew lead after lead late in games and failed to come up with big plays when they were needed most. And even worse, their clock management was the worst in the league.

Signing impact defenders won't help that aspect, but there's no doubt the Giants needed help on that side of the ball. Janoris Jenkins, Damon Harrison and Olivier Vernon will all step in and start right away, hoping to transform a defense that couldn't stop anyone a year ago. And as for the clock management issues, that's up to McAdoo.

He's reportedly assembling a group to assist in managing the clock in late-game situations, which they could have used last season. The Giants need help in more than just that department, but it's hard to argue that they look like one of the teams to beat in the NFC East.

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