The New York Giants know what the NFL standings look like. They’re well aware that their season record is 5-4 and that there’s a glaring 4-game losing streak mark next to their team name, which is tied with Washington for the longest active losing streak in the NFC East and is one behind league leader Detroit, wo’s lost five games in a row.
But you know what they aren’t doing? They’re not giving up hope nor the ship
“I think we still have the utmost confidence in ourselves,” said DE Osi Umenyiora less than 24 hours after the Giants let a game they should have won against San Diego slip through their fingers. “Obviously that was a game we lost. But we should’ve won. I don’t think that did anything to dampen our confidence. We just have to find a way to win those games. But we still think we’re one of the best teams in the NFL. We just have to go out there and prove it from here on out.”
It won’t be easy though as their last seven games feature contests against five teams with winning records, including three games against leaders in their respective division (Dallas, Minnesota, and Denver). If the Giants are to have a shot at earning a playoff berth, they’ll probably need to win four of those last seven games.
“We've still got a lot of confidence,” said QB Eli Manning, who completed 76 percent of his pass attempts against San Diego, which tied the second-best one-game mark of his career. (Manning hit 79 percent (26 of 33) at Arizona on Nov. 23, 2008 and 76 percent (19 of 25) vs. Seattle on Oct. 5, 2008.)
Despite the challenges that lie ahead and their record in the last four weeks, the Giants still feel they’re playoff worthy.
“This team is capable of winning a championship,” said LB Antonio Pierce. “It’s not all over. We just need to find a way to win one game and then we’ll just get on a roll.”
But one thing the Giants do have to be careful of is pressing too hard as they try to reverse their fortunes. Manning said he didn’t think that would be a problem. “I don't think you can ever work too hard,” he said. “I don't think we are pressing or were pressing yesterday. We got closer to playing our style of football where we have been able to win games. We gave ourselves a shot. We just left a little opening there and the Chargers took advantage of it.”
To make sure that they clean up the remaining flaws in their game, the giants coaching staff has planned out its annual self-scouting process and will work with the players when they return on Wednesday to clean up some of the issues that have marred their performance. The Giants will then be off starting Thursday through Sunday before returning to work next Monday to prepare for the Atlanta Falcons.
"All you need is a chance to have an opportunity and that’s what we really believe," said head coach Tom Coughlin. "We’ll have a chance."
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Head coach Tom Coughlin said that RB Brandon Jacobs (knee) and DE Justin Tuck (leg) were no worse for the wear today when they reported for treatment. The Giants won’t have to file any official injury reports until a week from Wednesday , but both Tuck and Jacobs said after the game that they’d be fine for the next context.
Linebacker Gerris Wilkinson, the Giants’ leading special teams tackler, underwent surgery this morning to repair a dislocated right wrist. Normal recovery time for the surgery is six to eight weeks. The operation was performed by Dr. Robert Hotchkiss at the Hospital for Special Surgery in Manhattan.
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Just a reminder that entries are still being accepted by TE Kevin Boss as part of his annual “Giving Thanks with the Bossman” contest. Pop on over the Boss’ official web site at
http://www.kevinbossman.com for all the details.
And to whoever wins the contest—you are in for a treat as Boss is a great guy to hang out with.
