New York Giants Season Preview: Odell Beckham Jr., Defense Are Keys To Success

There are a lot of reasons New York Giants fans have to be optimistic this season: The addition of Brandon Marshall and star receiver Odell Beckham Jr. is back, but the defense is the key to Big Blue winning a fifth Lombardi trophy.

ESPN projects the Giants will win 8.6 games, nearly three fewer than they won last year, and have only a 27 percent chance of winning the NFC East.

If the Giants are going to win how Odell Beckham Jr. is defended this year, and how he responds to the defense, is key.

Fourteen-year quarterback Eli Manning and Beckham Jr. should continue to be a "feared combination," according to the New York Post.

The addition of six-time Pro Bowl receiver Brandon Marshall should take pressure off of Beckham Jr. as defenses might have to choose which one of them to double cover.

Beckham should "thrive" in the offense, according to SI.com.

The running game has to also improve. It was ranked 29th last season.

The return of defensive end Jason Pierre-Paul is still someone offenses must "account for on every play," according to the Post.

Second-year cornerback Eli Apple and his position mate Dominique Rodgers-Cromarite, 31, also figure big into the defensive game plan. Safety Landon Collins is coming off a breakthrough season and it will be interesting to see how he does this year.

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Photo: New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning throws a pass during the first half of a preseason NFL football game against the New York Jets Aug. 26 in East Rutherford (Associated Press/Bill Kostroun)