The Giants will begin their 2018 preseason at home against the Cleveland Browns:
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J.
– The Giants' preseason schedule this summer will include three AFC opponents, a seldom-faced summertime foe from their own conference, and the 50th renewal of their most-frequently-contested preseason series.
The NFL today released each team's preseason opponents, and in Pat Shurmur's first year as head coach, the Giants will face teams from the AFC North (Cleveland), NFC North (Detroit), as well as their traditional preseason opponents from the AFC East (the Jets and New England).
The dates and times of the games will be announced in the future.
The Giants will not play any of their preseason opponents in the regular season.
In preseason Week 1 (Aug. 9-13), the Giants will host the Cleveland Browns in a game that could feature the top two selections in this month's NFL Draft (the two teams currently sit 1-2 in the first round, which will be held on April 26).
This will be the second year in a row the Giants and Browns square off in the preseason. Last Aug. 21, the Browns defeated the Giants in Cleveland, 10-6.
The Giants lead the preseason series (9-8) with the Browns, which began in 1970. They last faced the Browns in a preseason home game on Aug. 18, 2008, a nationally-televised game in Giants Stadium won by the home team, 37-34.
The Giants are 36-29-3 in preseason openers since 1950.
The Giants will visit the Lions in preseason Week 2 (Aug. 16-20). Detroit will be the Giants' first NFC North preseason opponent since they hosted the Chicago Bears in 2012.
The Giants and Lions last met in the preseason on Aug. 7, 2008, when the defending Super Bowl Champion Giants lost, 13-10, in Detroit. That was the teams' only preseason meeting since 1966.
From 1951-66, the Giants and Lions clashed on 13 occasions in the preseason – five times in Detroit, three times in Cleveland, twice apiece in Dallas and New Haven, and once in Norman, Okla. The Lions lead the preseason series, 9-4-1.
In preseason Week 3 (Aug. 23-26), the Giants will be the visiting team when they square off with the Jets in the annual MetLife Bowl. This will be the 50th consecutive summer in which the teams will meet since the series began in 1969. The Giants won the 2017 meeting, 32-31, their second consecutive one-point victory against the Jets. They trail in the annual preseason series, 25-23-1, with the tie coming in 1972.
The Giants will host the defending AFC champion Patriots in their preseason finale, which is customarily played 10 days before Sunday of Kickoff Weekend. This year, that is Thursday, Aug. 30. This will be the 14th consecutive year the two teams will close the preseason by facing one another. Last year, Davis Webb led the Giants down the field and Aldrick Rosas kicked a 48-yard field goal as time expired to give the Giants an exciting 40-38 comeback victory in Foxborough. The Giants lead the preseason series, 18-9. The two teams first met in the preseason in 1971.
The Giants were 2-2 in the preseason in 2016, defeating the Jets and Patriots, and losing to Pittsburgh and Cleveland.
