What Was the Score of the New York Giants: Why the Finale Actually Mattered

What Was the Score of the New York Giants: Why the Finale Actually Mattered

If you’re checking your phone or asking a smart speaker "what was the score of the New York Giants" game lately, you're likely looking for the result of the regular-season finale. The Giants closed out their 2025-2026 campaign on January 4, 2026, with a surprisingly dominant 34-17 victory over the Dallas Cowboys.

It was a weird one. Honestly, the season was a total disaster—ending with a 4-13 record—but they actually finished on a two-game winning streak. If you only look at the scoreboard, you'd think they were rolling. But fans know better.

What Was the Score of the New York Giants Against Dallas?

The Giants beat the Cowboys 34-17 at MetLife Stadium.

Most people didn't expect that. The Cowboys were favorites by about 3 points going in, but the Giants' offense finally looked like a professional unit. Rookie quarterback Jaxson Dart—who took over after a chaotic year of quarterback shuffling—put up 230 yards and two touchdowns. It was a clean game for him, no interceptions, which is a miracle if you watched the first ten weeks of this season.

The scoring broke down like this:

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  • First Quarter: Giants led 6-10 after some field goal trading and a Dallas rushing TD.
  • Second Quarter: Big Blue took the lead 16-10 before the half.
  • Third Quarter: A Tyrone Tracy Jr. touchdown catch made it 24-10.
  • Fourth Quarter: The Giants slammed the door with a Devin Singletary touchdown to finish at 34.

It’s funny how a Week 18 win feels. For a team that was already eliminated from the playoffs by Thanksgiving, beating a rival like Dallas doesn't change the standings, but it definitely changes the "vibes" going into a long offseason.

A Season of Radical Change

You can't talk about the score without talking about the mess that led to it.

The Giants fired Brian Daboll on November 10, right after they lost to the Chicago Bears and sat at a dismal 2-8. It felt like the air just went out of the building. Mike Kafka took over as the interim coach for the rest of the ride, and while the record didn't magically flip, the team didn't quit. That’s why that 34-17 score matters. Players were still hitting, still playing for their jobs.

Earlier in the season, things were brutal.
Remember the Week 2 loss to Dallas? That was a 40-37 overtime heartbreaker where the Giants looked like they might actually be good. Then they fell off a cliff. They lost to the Commanders, the Chiefs, the Saints—you name it. By the time they hit December, they were 2-13.

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Then, suddenly, they found something. They blew out the Raiders 34-10 in Week 17, then followed it up with the 34-17 win over Dallas. It’s the kind of late-season "meaningless" surge that Giants fans have seen before, leaving everyone wondering: Where was this in October?

The Impact of the 4-13 Record

Despite the win, the Giants finished dead last in the NFC East.
They were the first team in the NFL to be mathematically eliminated from the playoffs for the second year in a row. That’s a tough pill to swallow for a franchise with four Super Bowl rings.

But there’s a silver lining here. Because of that 4-13 record, they secured a top-tier draft pick.

What Happens Now for Big Blue?

The biggest news isn't the score of the last game, but who is coming in to fix the mess. The Giants recently made a massive splash by hiring John Harbaugh to be their next head coach for the 2026 season.

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This is huge. After years of hiring coordinators who didn't quite have the "head coach" gene—McAdoo, Shurmur, Judge, Daboll—they finally went out and got a guy who has won a Super Bowl and knows how to build a culture.

The roster is still a work in progress. Brian Burns was a bright spot, earning a Pro Bowl nod and being named a second-team All-Pro. Tyrone Tracy Jr. proved he can be a legitimate lead back in this league, racking up over 150 total yards in that final Dallas game. But they need more. The offensive line is still a question mark, and while Jaxson Dart showed flashes of being "the guy," Harbaugh will have to decide if he wants to stick with the kid or use that high draft pick on a new franchise savior.

Key Stats from the Season Finale:

  • Jaxson Dart: 22/32, 230 YDS, 2 TD.
  • Tyrone Tracy Jr.: 103 Rushing YDS, 1 TD.
  • Ben Sauls (Kicker): 4-for-4 on field goals (basically the team's MVP for half the season).
  • Defense: Held the Cowboys to just 17 points and forced a fumble.

Summary of the Latest Score

If you’re looking for the absolute latest, the New York Giants won their last game of the 2025 season 34-17 against the Dallas Cowboys. They didn't make the playoffs, they finished 4-13, and they’ve already moved on to the John Harbaugh era.

It was a rough 18 weeks, but ending on a high note against a division rival is at least a decent way to head into the spring.

To get ready for the next phase of Big Blue football, keep an eye on the NFL Scouting Combine in late February. This is where the Giants will begin scouting the talent they'll target with their top-5 draft pick to finally get out of the NFC East basement.