Giants need to finish what they started
Giants coach Tom Coughlin during the 2010 season. (Dec. 5, 2010) Credit: David Pokress
Tom Coughlin's one-word mantra for this season -- Finish! -- is just getting started.
Sure, the last five Giants games have all been decided in the fourth quarter, four of them in favor of his team. But the coach's battle cry is also about finishing seasons.
Since Coughlin and Eli Manning joined the team in 2004, the Giants, 5-2 going into Sunday's game at New England, have the second-best record in the NFL in September and October. But just like leaves, once Halloween passes, they turn into mulch.
Manning, who is having a career season, has a fourth-quarter passer rating of 119.3, tops in the NFL, and has completed 70 percent of his fourth-quarter passes. He has led the Giants to victory four times in games in which they trailed or were tied in the fourth quarter, raising his career total to 18. He had one such win last year; his previous career best was three in an entire season (2007 and 2009).
Although Manning has the NFL's best October record in the Super Bowl era, he has a losing record in November (12-14) and December (14-17). He's 2-1 in early January regular-season games, making him 28-32 at the point in the season when teams jostle for playoff berths in earnest.
Manning and the Giants have shown that they can finish games. Now they must finish the season.
"I thought we've done a great job this year of finishing games in the fourth quarter, way in the fourth quarter," Manning said this past week. "That was part of that situation. I think we have to take that same attitude into the season, finishing the season strong, no matter what point. It's just a matter of being confident -- we're going to go in there and play well -- but humble enough in preparation each week to make sure you're ready to play."
And it begins with the Patriots Sunday. Though technically not a game in the second half of the season (this is the eighth game in the Giants' 16-game schedule), consider this contest at Gillette Stadium the two-minute drive for points before halftime of a game. A field goal gives the team some momentum when the third quarter begins. A touchdown sends them soaring. A turnover can be deflating and hard to overcome.
The Giants' brutal schedule beyond this game is well-documented. After dealing with the Patriots, they face the 49ers, Eagles, Saints, Packers and Cowboys.
"We're playing this one game this week, I think, not the other ones," Coughlin said when asked about the challenges ahead. "We play it one at a time. Everyone is aware of the schedule, but we're excited about that."
Or as safety Antrel Rolle pointed out: "I don't worry about our schedule; I think our schedule needs to worry about us."
"As you get later in the season, they all become big games," Manning said. "You're starting to fight for playoff spots and see where you stand in the division, things like that. We know we have a big game this week."
The last time the Giants faced the Patriots in a meaningful game, it was one of the most exciting finishes in Super Bowl history. Perhaps this time, a performance against the Patriots will be the start of something.
