Coughlin, Giants Facing 'Difficult' 2015 Schedule
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- The NFL's schedule-makers didn't do the New York Giants any favors for the upcoming season.
Not only do the Giants have to go head-to-head with teams from the AFC East, which includes the defending champion New England Patriots and crosstown rival New York Jets, they'll have to contend with a schedule front-loaded with four of five prime-time games.
"This is a difficult schedule that includes many formidable opponents," Giants head coach Tom Coughlin said Tuesday, according to the team's official website. "We will face a challenge every week, not only in who we play, but with the different elements of our schedule. In the first six weeks of the season, we play two Sunday night games, a Thursday night game and a Monday night game."
The Giants haven't made the playoffs since the 2011 season, which ended with a Super Bowl title. The Lombardi honeymoon is over and Coughlin knows the pressure will be intense in his 12th year as New York's head coach.
This season will begin and end against NFC East rivals: Sept. 13 in Dallas and Jan. 3 at home against Philadelphia.
"We open the season in the NFC East at Dallas, which won the division last year," said Coughlin, a two-time champ with Big Blue. "We're playing some teams that are growing with new coaches. The AFC East includes the Super Bowl champions, a Miami team that just missed the playoffs last year and two teams, the Jets and Bills, which have new coaches. We have an unusually late bye this season, which we will hopefully use to our advantage."
New York finished 6-10 in 2014 and finished without a postseason berth for the fifth time in six seasons.
Here's the Giants' complete 2015 schedule, released Tuesday night by the NFL:
Week 1: Sunday, Sept. 13, at Dallas — 8:30 p.m.
Week 2: Sunday, Sept. 20, vs. Atlanta — 1 p.m.
Week 3: Thursday, Sept. 24, vs. Washington — 8:25 p.m.
Week 4: Sunday, Oct. 4, at Buffalo — 1 p.m.
Week 5: Sunday, Oct. 11, vs. San Francisco — 8:30 p.m.
Week 6: Monday, Oct. 19, at Philadelphia — 8:30 p.m.
Week 7: Sunday, Oct. 25, vs. Dallas — 4:25 p.m.
Week 8: Sunday, Nov. 1, at New Orleans — 1 p.m.
Week 9: Sunday, Nov. 8, at Tampa Bay — 4:05 p.m.
Week 10: Sunday, Nov. 15, vs. New England — 4:25 p.m.
Week 11: Sunday, Nov. 22, Bye
Week 12: Sunday, Nov. 29, at Washington — 1 p.m.
Week 13: Sunday, Dec. 6, vs. Jets — 1 p.m.
Week 14: Monday, Dec. 14, at Miami — 8:30 p.m.
Week 15: Sunday, Dec. 20, vs. Carolina — 1 p.m.
Week 16: Sunday, Dec. 27, at Minnesota — 1 p.m.
Week 17: Sunday, Jan. 3, vs. Philadelphia — 1 p.m.
