Sunday’s game between the New York Giants and Las Vegas Raiders was, objectively, one of the worst matchups in NFL history. It was only the third game ever between two teams at least 11 games under .500. It was the first time teams that had lost at least nine straight games had met.

The Giants “won” 34-10, even though most fans were left lamenting that the No. 1 pick was likely lost to the Raiders.

It’s fitting that such a dreadful matchup came near the end of my 10th season on the Giants beat. The Giants have a 54-109-1 record in my decade covering the team. That’s the second-worst record in the NFL (at least they’re not the Jets!) over that stretch.

I’ve been accused of being negative in my coverage, but even Ted Lasso would develop a hint of cynicism after spending a decade around such futility. With that in mind, rather than performing an autopsy of Sunday’s tank-off, I decided to rank how this season compares to the others I’ve covered.

In reverse order, here’s the ranking of the most miserable Giants seasons over the past decade:

10. 2016

The Giants were known as a first-class operation that was only a few years removed from winning a pair of Super Bowls when I joined the beat in 2016. Some cracks were showing in 2016 — first-year coach Ben McAdoo didn’t project strong leadership; the offensive line was a weakness; and there were some big personalities, especially on defense, that invited volatility. But the team still had two-time Super Bowl MVP Eli Manning at quarterback, wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. at the top of his game and a dominant defense thanks to a free agency spending spree.

An 11-5 record under McAdoo suggested a promising future. But then came the infamous “boat picture” before a 38-13 drubbing by the Packers in the wild-card round. It’s essentially been all downhill from there.

9. 2022

This was easily the most surprising season during my time on the beat. Everyone — including new general manager Joe Schoen and coach Brian Daboll — expected a rough first year to set up a complete teardown. Instead, Daboll and his staff squeezed everything out of quarterback Daniel Jones and a flawed roster.

A gutsy comeback win over the Titans in Week 1 sparked a 6-1 start. With each surprising win, it became easy to believe Daboll possessed a magic touch that had been lacking since Tom Coughlin was on the Giants’ sideline. The fast start enabled the Giants to withstand a second-half slump, as they finished 9-7-1 and made the playoffs for the first time since 2016.

A 31-24 win over the Vikings in the wild-card round was the Giants’ first postseason victory since Super Bowl 46. That was the best moment in my time covering the team. Jones’ virtuoso performance briefly allowed some reckless thoughts about another magical run, but those dreams quickly crashed back to reality with a blowout loss to the Eagles in the divisional round.

Still, it was a delightfully encouraging first season for a new regime that created hopes for a bright future. Of course, this season ultimately set the franchise back.

The best moment of the Jones-Daboll era came in a wild-card round win over the Vikings following a surprisingly successful 2022 season. (Stephen Maturen / Getty Images)

8. 2020

A new coach always brings a breath of fresh air, and Joe Judge’s powerful personality made a strong first impression. It was nice just to be covering a season during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, so an 0-5 start, which included running back Saquon Barkley’s torn ACL, wasn’t completely depressing.

A four-game winning streak got the Giants back into the race in a wacky season in the NFC East. The Giants had a shot to win the division, beating the Cowboys in the finale to finish 6-10. But the Eagles, who had nothing to play for, pulled quarterback Jalen Hurts in the second half of a 20-14 loss to the Commanders, which handed the NFC East crown to Washington.

Judge’s sharp criticism of the Eagles’ approach caused his approval ratings among Giants fans to soar to an all-time high. A 6-5 finish after the rough start provided hope for Judge’s second season.

7. 2018

Sticking with the new-coach bump, this was Pat Shurmur’s first season at the helm. A 5-11 finish didn’t feel as good as Judge’s first season because the Giants were trying to make one last run with Manning in 2018. That plan flopped, as the Giants started 1-7.

Taking Barkley with the No. 2 pick was an inauspicious start to general manager Dave Gettleman’s tenure. The Barkley/Beckham combination provided some electric moments, but the wide receiver’s baggage started to outweigh his on-field brilliance in his fifth season. Beckham’s ill-conceived ESPN interview alongside rapper Lil’ Wayne created unnecessary drama. He was then shut down for the final four games of the season with a bruised quad that paved the way to an offseason trade.

6. 2019

A new quarterback provides an even bigger spark than a new coach or general manager, and the “Danny Dimes” era started with so much promise. Jones led the Giants to an 18-point comeback win over the Buccaneers in his first start, which was one of the most memorable performances of the past decade.

But the buzz quickly wore off, as the season went off the rails with a nine-game losing streak. There was a brief respite with a swan song for Manning in Week 15, but Shurmur’s second season finished with a 4-12 record. He was fired after going 9-23 in two seasons, which matched his record from his two-year tenure as the Browns’ coach before coming to New York.

5. 2021

This is where the list transitions from bad to downright dysfunctional. This season featured some of the worst moments of the decade, from Judge’s epic 11-minute postgame rant in Week 17 to the mortifying quarterback sneaks in Week 18. Judge’s self-inflicted wounds in the final two weeks were the final nails in the coffin, but his fate was effectively sealed when Jones suffered a neck injury in a Week 12 win over the Eagles.

The Giants were 4-7 (and 10-12 dating back to the midpoint of the 2020 season) when Jones got injured. There was the unforgettable leak of the mysterious injury by a client of a carpenter who was friends with a member of ownership. That was a wild time. But the football wasn’t that bad until Judge was forced to start Mike Glennon and Jake Fromm as the Giants lost the final six games of the season.

4. 2024

It’s a sign of a bad season when there are multiple planes flying over the stadium before games imploring ownership to clean house. The aerial messages were prompted by a franchise record 10-game losing streak. That the Giants “achieved” such history during the season they were celebrating their 100th anniversary left a more bitter taste.

The Giants benched and then released Jones less than two years after signing him to a four-year, $160 million extension. That capped an ugly year that featured the front office’s deficiencies getting spotlighted on Hard Knocks. Barkley going to Philadelphia and having an all-time great season while leading the Eagles a Super Bowl title added to the Giants’ misery.

An airplane flies a banner over MetLife Stadium that reads “Mr Mara Enough – Plz Fix This Dumpster Fire.” (Associated Press)

3. 2023

There were worse seasons from a record standpoint than this 6-11 campaign. But it’s tough to match the controversy and drama from 2023.

The great vibes from the 2022 playoff season evaporated immediately in a 40-0 loss to the Cowboys in the opener that included a hamstring injury that sidelined left tackle Andrew Thomas for seven games. A 2-8 start was bad enough, but the underlying coaching staff turmoil multiplied the dysfunction.

Offensive coordinator Mike Kafka had play-calling duties yanked multiple times during the season. Defensive coordinator Wink Martindale’s clash with Daboll led to an ugly divorce after the season. Special teams coordinator Thomas McGaughey was among a handful of assistants to get fired.

Jones missed three games with a neck injury only to tear his ACL upon his return in Week 9, putting him on the shelf just six starts into the monster contract he signed during the offseason. Undrafted rookie Tommy DeVito provided a distraction with a three-game winning streak, but that sideshow couldn’t mask the team’s deep-rooted issues.

Schoen “expediting” the rebuild after the unexpected success of 2022 blew up during the 2023 season. The franchise is still digging out from that miscalculation.

2. 2025

It says something that this isn’t the franchise’s worst season of the past decade. The Giants lost nine straight games and could still wind up with the No. 1 pick in the draft.

The losing streak was defined by an unfathomable inability to finish games, with a 19-point fourth-quarter collapse in Denver the lowlight. That came after a Week 6 win over the Eagles in prime time that was the highlight of recent seasons.

Rookie quarterback Jaxson Dart provided a jolt, but a concussion in Week 10 sidelined him for two weeks and stunted his development. Major injuries to young offensive stars Malik Nabers and Cam Skattebo robbed excitement from the offense, while the defense has been an underachieving mess.

Daboll was fired after Week 10. Defensive coordinator Shane Bowen was fired after Week 12. Assistant defensive line coach Bryan Cox was fired after Week 13. Turning the final weeks of the season into the NFL’s version of “Survivor” was the culmination of an abysmal three-year run by this regime.

1. 2017 

Recency bias may tilt the scales toward the Daboll/Schoen era, but nothing compares to the dysfunction of 2017. A season that started with Super Bowl aspirations after the 2016 playoff berth went up in smoke with a 0-5 start that bottomed out when Beckham broke his ankle in Week 5.

That was just the start, however. The benching of Manning in Week 13 was mishandled, with backlash from fans and former players so intense that ownership fired McAdoo and general manager Jerry Reese.

The locker room was a disaster. Veteran cornerbacks Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie and Janoris Jenkins were each suspended for one game for violating team rules. Second-year cornerback Eli Apple was called a “cancer” by teammate Landon Collins.

It was a completely toxic environment that got even worse with a sham GM search that ended with Gettleman’s hiring. The 3-13 record of 2017 was surpassed by a 3-14 record in 2024 (which could be matched this season), but nothing has compared to the overall misery of the 2017 season over the past decade.