The Giants have been here before, almost every year in fact, since Tom Coughlin took over as coach in 2004.
The Giants head to Dallas on Sunday afternoon at 5-2, which is the exact record they have had after seven games in seven of their eight seasons under Coughlin. The one exception came in 2008 when the Giants were 6-1 on their way to 12-4 and the NFC’s top seed. Could these Giants, who, like that team, is defending a Super Bowl title, be on the same path to a dominant regular season?
“I hope not,” said former Giants center Shaun O’Hara, now an analyst for NFL Network.
“Our track record, the last time we were 12-4 we lost to Philly in the divisional round,” he said. “This team is much better at 10-6 and 9-7 as far as the postseason is concerned.”
After the hot starts under Coughlin the results have been mixed: Two Super Bowl titles, three playoff losses and three second-half collapses. They will try and build on this season’s playoff prospects when they take on a Cowboys team that beat them 24-17 in the season opener at MetLife Stadium. Not much has gone right for the 3-3 Cowboys since, and not much has gone wrong for the Giants.
“A lot can change in six weeks, huh?” O’Hara said. “People were getting ready to bury the Giants already. … I always looked forward to playing the Cowboys regardless of our record, their record. It was always a great challenge, a physical game. It was an opponent we knew extremely well. It’s a fun game to play in, fun game to watch. It is one of the best matchups in the NFL.
“If you are the Cowboys, you have to be concerned with that they have yet to be the Giants in Jerry’s new house. I think Eli has signed that wall three times now. I think that will provide some motivation for the Cowboys, they’re coming off a big win in Carolina, but I can tell you they are not very happy with the way that they played. So, I know they are going to be fired up for this game.”
But it might not matter if the Giants are playing at their optimal level. Despite a 26-3 demolishing of the NFC favorite 49ers two weeks ago, O’Hara said he believes his former team has yet to play their best football. The fact this group seems to save their best for the biggest spots should be a scary notion for the Cowboys and any opponent left on the schedule.
“That’s been their mantra for this season: building a bridge,” said O’Hara, who was released by the Giants after the lockout last year and officially retired before this season. “They have definitely done that,”
“The Giants, the interesting thing about them, is that they are still not playing their best football, which is crazy. The 49ers game that was the best they played as a team, but they kicked field goals where they could have scored touchdowns. I think they all still feel like there’s room for improvement, so that’s encouraging for Giants fans. They also realize while it’s great to win football games now, none of it matters if you don’t win games in December.”