beyond the back page In Week 1 of the NFL, the Giants and Jets both gave us reasons to believe By Peter Botte Published Sep. 14, 2026, 7:40 a.m. ET Robert Sabo for the NY Post; Getty Images Fans of both New York teams already were ready for some football, but two encouraging performances on the opening Sunday of the 2026 NFL season have already raised the optimism for followers of both tenants of MetLife Stadium.
The Giants followed the Jets’ rock-solid win earlier in the day with an impressive 28-20 victory over the Cowboys in primetime in new coach John Harbaugh’s debut, marking the first time both local squads have opened a season 1-0 since 2009.
To put that in perspective, the overdue Yankees still hadn’t even won their most-recent World Series title the last time that happened.
The Giants were an efficient, disciplined and balanced team in Game 1 of the Harbaugh era, led by second-year quarterback Jaxson Dart’s three touchdown passes and 54 rushing yards with zero turnovers.
