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Biggest surprise: Defensive struggles

Why it's a surprise: The defense was supposed to be the strength of this Giants team. It isn't. It is ranked 22nd in the NFL allowing 382 yards per game. And it's probably not going to get much better. The Giants still haven't found answers at edge rusher and are without starting middle linebacker Blake Martinez for the remainder of the season. It's hard to be a top defense like what was expected with a pedestrian pass rush. -- Jordan Raanan

When the Giants selected Saquon Barkley and Daniel Jones in back-to-back drafts, the plan was for the pair of top-10 picks to lead Big Blue for years to come. A disappointing 2020 season brought complications to that plan, but the duo performed like young stars in a stunning 27-21 road win over the Saints. Jones threw for a career-high 402 yards and commanded the offense with confidence, while Barkley scored two touchdowns, including the game-winner in overtime, and looked very much like the player who dominated the league for stretches before suffering a torn ACL last September. The Giants put themselves in a deep hole with their 0-3 start, but a closer look under the hood shows a team with the ability to get hot.

That was a nice showing by Daniel Jones on the road against the Saints. Throwing for over 400 yards in an upset victory says a lot about his growth.

New York hadn't won a game in nine months prior to Sunday's breakthrough. Now it's off to Dallas in search of a streak.

After a fluky loss in Week 2 to Washington and giving a game away in Week 3 to Atlanta, the Giants finally got a tight game to go their way against the Saints. It was encouraging to see Saquon Barkley finally looking like, well, Saquon Barkley again. He had 126 yards from scrimmage, including a 54-yard touchdown. But let's not let one win take the pressure off offensive coordinator Jason Garrett to design more creative plays for quarterback Daniel Jones as the Giants enter a brutally difficult stretch of games. It starts Sunday against the surging Cowboys.