Come in, get a lift, get some running in and then go home.
That was Tom Coughlin’s Victory Monday reward to the Giants after they won their fourth straight game, an effective but still not complete 27-13 dismissal of the Packers to set up perhaps the biggest game in NFL history between teams with a combined record of 9-11, a game in which neither team can seize sole possession of first place.
This doesn’t happen often, but the Giants disregarded Coughlin’s decree. He gave his players the afternoon off, but they didn’t head to the exit in droves, or at all. They stayed and conducted their usual players-only debriefing and watched tape of the Packers game together before quickly tucking away their latest triumph as they immediately geared up for what comes next.
“Guys are getting ready for Dallas,’’ linebacker Jon Beason said Monday. “That win yesterday was huge but it’s short-lived because now it’s all about Dallas.’’
It sure is all about Dallas. What was once so far down the road is now right in front of the Giants, who at 0-6 could barely envision the Nov. 24 rematch with the Cowboys would be one of those late-season NFC East confrontations that define seasons.
Jason Pierre-Paul, author of the play of the season with his game-clinching interception of novice NFL starter Scott Tolzien and ensuing touchdown return, has already laid down the law for this game, declaring: “We’re going to put it on ’em, man. It’s going to be a fight, it’s going to be a dogfight, and there’s going to be a lot of blood spilled out there.’’
No doubt, “blood spilled’’ gets the attention of the next opponent.
“He’s supposed to feel that way,” Cowboys receiver Dez Bryant, no stranger to emotional outbursts, told reporters at Valley Ranch. “You’re an opponent. We’re an opponent for them. It’s great confidence.”
Justin Tuck has never hidden his distaste for the Cowboys — his most despised division rival — and he was at it again looking ahead to this game between the Giants (4-6) and the Cowboys (5-5), teams looking to make a move on the first-place Eagles (6-5).
“I can honestly say that we don’t like each other and it shows up on the football field,’’ Tuck said.
Coughlin for the first time this season gave his players a break from their normal day-after game routine, and seeing so many players at work into the afternoon was certainly an eye-opener.
“That the captains decided to have the players meet, I’m pleased with that, but I’m not surprised,’’ Coughlin said.
The Giants embarked on this season with a six-turnover atrocity in a disturbing 36-31 loss at Dallas, but they believe they are not that team any longer.
“It definitely feels like a different season,’’ Eli Manning said during his weekly WFAN spot.
Beason, the former Panthers Pro Bowler, has never been a part of Giants-Cowboys but he got into the spirit, predicting: “It’s going to be very chippy and we’re going to want to knock them off because it’s a heated rivalry.’’
Facing Tony Romo will be a drastic step up in class after the Giants compiled their four-game winning streak against unprepared Josh Freeman, one-legged Michael Vick and then overmatched rookie Matt Barkley, sore-kneed Terrelle Pryor and finally the mistake-prone Tolzien. The facts are the facts, even though the Giants don’t want to hear it.
“All I know is that I heard enough criticism at the beginning of the year for six weeks that winning is what’s supposed to take place,’’ Coughlin said. “We don’t really have a whole lot to say about the opponent’s physical status coming into the game, just as they don’t about ours.’’
Beason dismissed the criticism the Giants have yet to beat a quality quarterback.
“People can say we haven’t faced the best quarterbacks, but we don’t get much props for shutting down the top running backs either,’’ Beason said. “To me, it all depends on how you want to spin it. Guys are going to say you haven’t played anybody, but we know how hard it is to win in this league.’’
As for proving a point against a top-tier quarterback such as Romo, Beason said “If you’re looking for motivation for this week, something is wrong with you.’’