Power Rankings: Giants Down But Not Out
Credit: Denny Medley-USA TODAY Sports
The New York Giants are 0-4 on the season and look like one of the worst teams in all of football. There is very little around the locker room to be positive about.
However, the veteran Giants have been saying all the right things this past week.
Antrel Rolle truly believes the Giants can win out and finish the season with 12 wins and dares anyone to doubt him.
Justin Tuck is making sure the locker room stays united by threatening punching a teammate in the face if he doubts Tom Coughlin.
Optimism seems high for a team who has looked as bad as the Giants have so far this season. That is a very good thing because that is a swagger the Giants normally have and need to get back into this season.
The truth is a win this Sunday can actually move the Giants in the right direction.
If the Giants can beat the also struggling Philadelphia Eagles and the Dallas Cowboys fall to the seemingly unstoppable Denver Broncos then through five weeks of the NFL season the Giants will only be one game back in the NFC East.
That is all that matters. If the Giants are still alive after this week, what happened in the first four weeks would no longer matter.
So the Giants may very well be down right now, but I wouldn’t count them out just yet.
ESPN.com rank: 30 (29)
ESPN.com took the time to mention that despite the Giants not having a win and looking terrible, Victor Cruz is not the reason.
Cruz has figured out a way to back-up the contract he received this offseason and has performed like the All-Pro he is.
Cruz goes out week-in and week-out and gives maximum effort and was rewarded this offseason with a new contract. He should be commended.
Teammate Hakeem Nicks should look across the locker room and ask for some advice has he has struggled this season in a contract year and has been running his mouth.
What were they thinking: Certain decisions when creating a power rankings list should just be easy ones to make. That is what the Detroit Lions should have done by handily beating the Chicago Bears last week.
However, the voters over at ESPN.com were not compelled enough to move the Lions one spot higher in the rankings to jump the team they just beat. It doesn’t make much sense to have the Bears still ahead of the Lions. Especially after what we witnessed on Sunday.
Foxsports.com: 28 (29)
In the surprise of surprises, Brian Billick moved the Giants up one spot in his rankings following their defeat to the Kansas City Chiefs.
He referenced that the Giants ran for a season-high 98 yards. That actually is a nice stat considering the talent that is on the Chiefs defense.
David Wilson has looked better in his limited carries and most importantly is holding onto the ball. I can see him gaining more confidence going forward.
Unfortunately getting him significant carries is difficult to do when the Giants find themselves down early and often.
What were they thinking: The Arizona Cardinals must be thinking to themselves what do they have to do to move up in the rankings. Down double-digits in the fourth quarter to the Tampa Bay Bucs, they were able comeback for the victory.
That wasn’t enough in Billick’s mind to move them up in the rankings. In fact, he was so unimpressed with their victory he moved them down one spot in his rankings. Speaking as a fan of the team with zero wins on the season, I envy the Cardinals who have two.
It is not easy to win in the NFL, so when you do you should be rewarded not penalized.
CBSSPORTS.com: 30 (29)
Pete Prisco echoed my theme in his ranking of the Giants. The Giants have not been good this season and normally an 0-4 start to the season means its over and time to look towards next year.
However, thanks to a below-average division this season and the Cowboys unwillingness to run away with the NFC East, the Giants very much still have a shot.
They won’t go anywhere fast if they continue to play the way they have so that obviously will have to change, but if it does and the G-men can find their true form, anything is possible.
What were they thinking: Is it possible to have a bad bye-week? According to Prisco’s ranking of the Green Bay Packers it is. The Pack had a week 4 bye and dropped one spot in the rankings.
I understand the idea of some teams jumping them in the standings. But odds are there were teams that dropped below them. Whatever the Pack did wrong they should look at the Carolina Panthers for advice.
The Panthers shared a bye-week with the Pack and were able to move two spots up. Now that is a good week off.