TAMPA, Fla. — It is such a tiny word and it should be kept as far away from the Giants as possible, because this is a franchise that for too long does not allow for the lure of possibility to enter into its realm.
The Giants too often live down to what is expected of them, and for so very long, the expectations swirling around them were and are so darn meager. They are on what for them is an upswing, though, winning two of their last three games, and that at least allows for that tiny little word to creep into the back door of their ongoing season.
If.
If they somehow find a way to beat the Buccaneers on Monday night at Raymond James Stadium, who can’t they beat the rest of the way?
If they somehow hand Tom Brady a third consecutive loss, which quarterback remaining on the Giants’ schedule can they not handle?
A win, a loss, a win and then the bye week has the Giants on a month-long rise that puts them as one of four in the NFC to enter the week with a 3-6 record, which means they have plenty of heavy lifting to do merely to approach wild card contender status (the 49ers, Saints and Vikings at 5-5 were locked in a three-way tie for the second and third wild-card spots after Sunday’s 1 p.m. games). The Giants are healthier on offense than at any other time this season — running back Saquon Barkley and left tackle Andrew Thomas return after missing multiple games with injuries — but the absence of free safety Logan Ryan (COVID-19 reserve list) is a blow to a defense that needs all the experience and savvy it can muster against Brady’s laser focused assaults.
“I think we’re certainly excited about where this team’s going,” quarterback Daniel Jones said. “We feel like we’ve improved week-to-week as a team.”
When the Giants take the field, it will have been 15 days since they last played, beating the Raiders at MetLife Stadium. It will be 30 days since the Bucs last won a game, but they still sit in first place in the NFC South.
This will be Jones’ second game in this Florida Gulf Coast locale. In his first NFL start, Jones in Week 3 in 2019 threw for two touchdowns, ran for two touchdowns and brought the Giants back from an 18-point halftime deficit for a rousing 32-31 victory. Those were the pre-Brady Bucs, of course.
“The first half obviously wasn’t great,” Jones said. “The second half and kind of just catching rhythm, making plays. The final drive I think was the thing I’ll remember the most.”
The final drive ended with Jones sprinting into the end zone for the game-winning touchdown, creating a first-start highlight he has been unable to duplicate often enough.
More than two years later, the Giants remain in rebuild mode, lugging a sub-.500 record into the second half of a season, very much on the outside, looking in, as far as postseason inclusion. Finding a way to pull an upset in this spot changes everything with the Giants, as far as the possibilities they create moving forward.
“I think we have a great chemistry right now as a team,” coach Joe Judge said. “We’re really building going forward. That’s been very encouraging. I see the units playing together, offensively, defensively and in the kicking game and really coming forward right now as a team. I’m very encouraged about what I see from our team.”
That encouragement will turn into flat-out excitement if the Giants keep their pre-bye week momentum rolling. This team has not won back-to-back games all season, so this would be a milestone in many ways. If the Giants can make it happen. If. There is that little word again.
