Mathematically, the Giants are in still in the playoff chase. Their 24-17 win over the Redskins in Washington on Sunday night assured them another week of playing for more than just self-respect and dignity. At 5-7 with four games remaining, the Giants are at the brink of elimination, yet march on with hope.
The 0-6 start haunts them, even if the Giants say they have to look forward to Sunday’s game versus the San Diego Chargers on the road. What if they could have just won two of those six? The atmosphere surrounding the Giants would be significantly different heading into Week 14.
“As far as that, it is what it is,” said running back Andre Brown on Sunday. “You can’t go back and look at the past and say, ‘We wish we could have did this and could have did that,’ but we put ourselves in a situation where we’re at it now, and we just have to go out there and continue to win football games and hope for a miracle.”
And it’s going to take a miracle for the Giants to be one of the six postseason representatives from the NFC. Still, as long as the possibility exists, they must forge ahead.
“Well, like I said, we’ve got a group of guys that just believe,” said wide receiver Hakeem Nicks, whose subpar, controversy-filled season has certainly been a crucial factor in the below-average performance of the offense.
“We’re in the situation where we’ve got to win all [of our five remaining games]…but we know that. [We have] a bunch of veteran guys on this team, and we know what we’re capable of doing. We’ve just got to … take it one game at a time. I think we can do it.”
What else can the Giants do? They are in no position to look beyond the 5-7 Chargers. Every game now is an elimination game and an evaluation period for the coaching staff and front office.
For Nicks and several others, it is likely the final few weeks of their careers as Giants.