It is easier when you are winning.
It is much more difficult now that the Giants are losing.
Brian Daboll is in his first season as a head coach on any level but he did not need to go through what has transpired in Year 1 with the Giants to understand the way it works. He is not an NFL coaching novice. He saw how his words, his approach, his decisions and even his mannerisms were glorified when his team was succeeding on the field, winning six of the first seven games. And now he is witnessing how so much that was extolled about him is now being scrutinized, after going winless in the last five games.
Daboll did not break character after his team was thrashed 48-22 by the Eagles and he did not expand on the selling job he might have to undertake this week, with the Giants preparing for what essentially is a playoff eliminator on Sunday against the Commanders at FedEx Field.
Daniel Jones and the Giants can see their playoff hopes grow with a win over the Commanders on Sunday. Charles Wenzelberg / New York Post“You’re just real,’’ Daboll said Monday. “We got beat soundly. You don’t want that to happen, but it happened. We’ve tried to preach consistency in our meetings rooms, in our practices. It’s easy to do when you get the results you want. The challenge is when you don’t get the results you want. That’s where leadership, that’s where consistency, that’s where teamwork, that’s where all that stuff comes in because this is the world we live in.
“We are judged on results, which I completely understand. I’ve done this a long enough time — I’ve been on both ends of it. The really good head coaches, leaders, players I’ve ever been around had that quality of consistency.’’
The even-keel approach will be tested as the Giants try to rebound for what awaits them.
It is essentially a four-team race for two playoffs spots, with the winner of the Giants-Commanders rematch of the 20-20 tie in Week 13 having the best chance to make it in. At present, the Commanders (7-5-1) are the No. 6 seed and the Giants (7-5-1) are the No. 7 seed. The Seahawks (7-6) and surging Lions (6-7) are also in the picture.
The FiveThirtyEight analytics site has the Commanders with a 73 percent chance to make the playoffs and the Giants with a 44 percent chance. Those odds move considerably depending on what happens this weekend. If the Giants win, they are at 85 percent to make the playoffs (the Commanders drop to 34 percent). If the Commanders win, they are at 89 percent to make the playoffs and the Giants drop to 25 percent.
Given what teams ordinarily need to do to crash the playoff party, the Giants are fortunate to have their fate in their hands, considering how bad they have been at implementing a key foundation piece for any building program: Winning at home in the division.
The Giants blew their last chance to win a game within the NFC East at MetLife Stadium this season when they were hammered by the Eagles. A week earlier, the Giants failed to defeat the visiting Commanders, wasting several opportunities to come out ahead before settling for a tie. Back in Week 3, the Giants lost at home to the Cowboys 23-16.
That is it for this season, as far as home games against division rivals. The Giants finished 0-2-1 at home when facing the NFC East, the first time since 2018 they did not win a division home game. The Giants are 0-3-1 against the NFC East, with road games remaining at Washington and Philadelphia.
Giants cornerback Fabian Moreau breaks up a pass intended for Washington Commanders wide receiver Cam Sims. Bill Kostroun“Haven’t won any games, us,’’ Daboll said, when asked what he has learned in his first year in the NFC East. “Any time you’re playing teams in your division they always mean more.’’
As long as they find a way to beat the Commanders, the Giants can go 1-4-1 in their division and still find a way into the postseason. It also is possible that all four NFC East teams make the NFC tournament.
“Coach Daboll always says what we do in December is what people remember,’’ left tackle Andrew Thomas said.
Before any of this is put in motion, the Giants must beat the Commanders and that means Daboll has to get their minds and bodies right.
“We have a fairly young team,’’ he said. “We have some guys that have been here for a few years that have had 10-plus losing seasons, however many years in a row. We have some other veterans that have been places that have won, same with the coaching staff. The most important thing is you’ve developed a team, you developed it through OTAs and training camp to withstand certain things that come your way.’’
