The New York Giants wrapped up the preseason Thursday night with a perfect 3-0 record, defeating the Bills, Jets and Patriots by a combined score of 107-47.

But now they count.

Here are five questions for the Giants as they navigate the next two weeks before kickoff in Landover, Md.

Who makes the 53?

Building the roster is a year-round process, but it culminates with Tuesday's announcement of the initial 53-man roster. By and large, the players locked in by 4 p.m. ET will take the 2025 Giants as far as they can go.

"They put so much time and effort into being the best they can be to try to make a roster," coach Brian Daboll said. "Unfortunately you can only keep a certain amount. I certainly appreciate everybody's work ethic and commitment to the team. Even the way the guys were playing all the way up to the end. I know it's the third preseason game, but I think there is something to be said for the level of discipline and accountability and effort they give all the way through. Guys on the sideline jumping up and down and running down after TJ [Moore] had that pick. We're trying to build something, but these next couple days are tough. Tough on the players and tough on the personnel staff, the coaching staff, because this is a relationship business."

The Giants began their moves Friday morning with the release of the following eight players:

• WR Jordan Bly
• ILB K.J. Cloyd
• CB O'Donnell Fortune
• ILB Dyontae Johnson
• C Jimmy Morrissey
• WR Zach Pascal
• WR Montrell Washington
• OL Jaison Williams

Who gets picked in the "second draft" next week?

Personnel departments refer to next week as the "second draft." That's when roughly 1,200 players will be released heading into Labor Day Weekend as teams pare down their rosters from the current 90-man limit.

The claiming period for players placed on waivers at the final roster reduction will expire at noon on Wednesday. The Giants are third in the claiming order on the waiver wire. After that, clubs may establish a practice squad of 17 players, as long as one player qualifies as international.

"This will be a big preseason for us in terms of when players are released during that time," general manager Joe Schoen said at the start of training camp. "If the first two teams don't claim a player, now it comes to us and we've had some success claiming some players since we've been here at the, we call it the second draft, that time of year. It's a busy time of year. It's a lot of players to work through, a lot of film to watch."

Assistant general manager Brandon Brown spoke earlier this week about the importance of that period and why Tuesday's 53-man roster is just the "initial" one.

"When you look at the cut-down scenario, our process is never going to change," Brown said. "Obviously, we're third in the claim order, but our needs are different than they were in year one when we had heavy claims and were more so purging the roster. Now, we're always trying to canvas where we can make incremental improvements. If you look at roster spots, call it 46 to 53, where there is opportunity for improving and creating competition on the back end, whether it's a special teams role, whether it's a depth role, whether it's a depth versatility role, multi-position flex. And as we get out of this next game, figuring out where our guys stack, versus the other 31 clubs and what they have to offer on the waiver wire and then seeing what the best combination is for us going into that first week."

What does the QB room look like Week 1?

The roster is a numbers game, and all eyes will be waiting to see how it plays out in the quarterback room. Over the offseason, the Giants assembled a quartet of Russell Wilson, Jameis Winston, rookie Jaxson Dart and Tommy DeVito, garnering headlines from around the world of sports. Their leadership and play on the field, though, are what really stood out as the Giants scored at least 30 points in three consecutive preseason games for the first time in franchise history.

"I thought all the quarterbacks played well," Daboll said. "Thought they played well all preseason. Thought they played well all training camp. Decisive, quick, good decision-making."

"We're all really good players," said Dart, the 25^th overall pick. "I think everybody has seen that throughout practices, throughout camp. We all operate at high levels and guys just continuing to get better each and every day. It's a really fun room to be a part of because it's super competitive that way. We have an amazing relationship between all of us."

The Giants kept three quarterbacks on their 53-man roster a year ago, with DeVito serving as the emergency third quarterback on gameday. Under league rules, a club may designate a quarterback as an inactive/emergency third quarterback for a regular-season or postseason game. The player must be listed on the gameday administration report, which is submitted 90 minutes before kickoff.

The emergency third quarterback must be on the club's 53-player roster; the player cannot be an elevated practice squad player. The club's starting quarterback (QB1) and its backup quarterback (QB2) must also be on the club's 53-player roster.

Meanwhile, Dart has been able to develop at the pace set by the staff, namely Daboll, assistant head coach/offensive coordinator Mike Kafka and quarterbacks coach Shea Tierney.

"Being a rookie quarterback is not easy; being a quarterback is not easy," Daboll said. "He knows he has a lot of things to work on, but he's made progress every day. I'm glad we drafted him and I'm glad he's our guy."

Dart's development will largely go out of the public eye now that training camp and preseason are finished. But it is far from over behind the scenes at 1925 Giants Drive.

"I feel like whenever my number is called, I'm going to go out there and I am going to play my game and ball," Dart said after starting the finale after Wilson and the first team got the night off. "That's my mindset any time I touch the field. Obviously, Russ is the starter and he's going to be amazing. He's had such a great camp and has played at an elite level."

Who is (and isn't) on the first injury report?

Formal injury reports are not required in the preseason. The first one will be released Wednesday of game week, and the picture will start to become clearer. The Giants made it a point to play all healthy starters in the first two preseason games. Wide receiver Malik Nabers was not among them. He will be a name to watch along with left tackle Andrew Thomas, who returned to practice on Tuesday after being on the physically unable to perform list all summer.

How do you attack the Commanders?

As general manager Joe Schoen said during the preseason opener in Buffalo, the Giants have "got to be ready to play when September comes." That's why they played their starters in the preseason. That's why they held two joint practices with the Jets. That's why they signed players like Wilson, who knows what it takes to win consistently.

The Giants are just 2-8 in their last 10 games in September. They started 2-0 in 2022, which uncoincidentally led to their last postseason appearance.

The Giants open the season Sept. 7 at Washington, their first leg in back-to-back road games against NFC East rivals. The Giants lost both of their games last season to the Commanders – who went on to make their first NFC Championship Game since 1991 thanks to the play of Offensive Rookie of the Year Jayden Daniels – by a combined eight points. The first was decided on a field goal as time expired after the Giants had taken the lead into the fourth quarter.

But every season is different, for better or worse. The Giants have built positive momentum in the preseason, which will take them only as far as they perform in Week 1.

"I think just the effort of the guys is what we're really focused on, the discipline, their team-first attitude, their work ethic, big things, accountability to one another, to the coaches, to the players," Daboll said after the preseason finale. "Again, it's a process of training camp to the preseason games and being able to execute regardless of who is in there. There is a standard that I'm going to hold everybody to, and we've got 17 days here before the first one. So we've got a lot of work to still get done."