Hope is an elusive thing in sports — as elusive as finding a franchise quarterback or scoring a winning lottery ticket.
Sometimes hope is realistic, because it is based on tangible evidence. Sometimes it is a completely unrealistic pipe dream, because the odds are too long and the math simply does not add up.
After Sunday’s season-obliterating 24-21 home loss to the Cowboys, the Giants find themselves clinging to pipe-dream hope now.
Sure, even at 4-7, two full games behind the 6-5 Eagles (with whom they split the season series) and essentially three games behind the 6-5 Cowboys (who swept them), there are permutations that show the Giants are not dead in a mathematical sense.
But you know and I know the Giants are dead and done for 2013. The question is: Do the Giants know?
Veteran running back Brandon Jacobs told The Post on Monday he will know the answer to that question when the players return to the field for Wednesday’s practice for their Sunday night game at Washington.
“Now we find out who wants to play and who doesn’t,’’ Jacobs said in the quiet of a depressed, almost-empty locker room Monday. “At this point we have a long shot. There is a lot that has to happen for us to make it. We have to keep fighting, but if some guys think in their in minds it’s over, then we don’t have a chance.
“We have to finish 9-7,’’ Jacobs said, meaning the Giants must win their last five games, which include trips to Washington, San Diego and Detroit. “If we don’t give ourselves that chance for things to happen with certain other teams losing, then it’s all for nothing. We have to play like we still have a chance. If you ask me, we have a chance. Stranger things have happened.’’
The two most important points to the complicated playoff scenario for the Giants, assuming they finish 9-7, are:
- They cannot win a two-team tiebreaker with Dallas because the Cowboys own the 2-0 head-to-head advantage, so they need the Cowboys to finish no better than 8-8.
-  They cannot win a three-team tiebreaker in the division with the Eagles and Cowboys because the Cowboys, even with a loss to the Eagles (their last division game), would be 3-1 against the Eagles and Giants, the Eagles would be 2-2 against the Cowboys and Giants and the Giants the Giants would be 1-3 against the Cowboys and Eagles.
So the Giants’ best chance is to finish alone at 9-7 while the Eagles and Cowboys finish no better than 8-8, because their tiebreaker chances are almost nil.
The margin for error is virtually at zero. Only five games remain and the Cowboys and Eagles have separated themselves. One more loss and the Giants really are done. And when there’s no longer even a baby carrot to chase, what happens then?
The Giants have not had a losing season under head coach Tom Coughlin since his first year with the team when they went 6-10 in 2004. So soon we will be on that watch — the quit watch.
“That’s not going to happen,’’ cornerback Terrell Thomas said. “There ain’t no quitters [here]. We were 0-6; we could have been dead, done [then]. We gave ourselves every shot to get back into this race. We came up short against Dallas, but it ain’t over. It’s a long season and you never know what can happen. We’re going to hang our hat on that.’’
Thomas, like Jacobs, will have a watchful eye on the vibe in Wednesday’s practice. Will players have a bounce in their step? Will there be energy chatter? Or will they still be hungover from Sunday’s loss?
“That’s when you start finding out which guys want to play,’’ Jacobs said.
The surest bet on the team is Coughlin will not lose his fire, which was on display Monday as he channeled his inner Herman Edwards, stopping just short of ranting: “YOU PLAY TO WIN THE GAME!’’
“It’s not going to be over until the five games are over,’’ Coughlin said defiantly. “The one thing that all of you would like to try to figure into this is you don’t have anything to play for. We’ve got a lot to play for.’’
“As long as there’s any hope,’’ defensive tackle Cullen Jenkins said, “you hold onto whatever hope there is.’’