Giants gear up for playoffs – if they can avoid the week off trap



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The Giants are ready for this stretching race.

They are as healthy as the entire season, with reinforcements arriving on defense. Their sophomore quarterback is showing signs of getting it. They’re on a two-game winning streak and sat down on Thanksgiving Day and got the result (Washington vs. Cowboys) that benefits them in the wacky NFC East race.

Next up, Sunday in Cincinnati, is a game with the Bengals – non-contenders who just lost their star rookie quarterback to a devastating injury with franchise-wide repercussions.

It looks like all the giants are coming. They can move up to first place, for at least a day, if they beat the Bengals. To accomplish this less than Herculean mission, all the Giants need to do is make sure they remember to bring their A-game with them after their week off – a surprisingly harder task than it should. being.

“I think sometimes you can overdo it,” said coach Joe Judge. “For me, it all depends on how you handle matchweek. The bye is very important. It is really important to regenerate physically, mentally. It’s also important for the self-scout and to get a good start on some of the opponents to come. We did everything we were able to do last week to help the team.

Joe judge
Joe judgeNew York Post: Charles Wenzelberg

“I would say the most important thing for me when you go into game week not to go into it. You have to go back to this routine, it’s very important to me. That being said, you can sort of spread it across the league, it’s probably close to 50-50 across the board in terms of teams coming off weeks off. ”

In their last two games, the Giants have beaten teams that have retired, as rest and health did not contribute to either Washington or the Eagles’ results. In a sport in which the weekly grind often resembles a metronome in its repeated consistency, an in-season respite isn’t always a panacea.

“I think the biggest mistake is people think when you go out of a bye you’re automatically fresher and faster and stuff like that,” Judge said. “I think it’s a myth. You have to get out and all that matters is how you play that Sunday. You have to wake up and you have to eliminate these cobwebs because the only thing is these guys will have four days off without being around us as coaches or hearing our voices. Four days this season is like four months. It’s just.”

The Giants are so much more alive than any 3-7 team is allowed to be. Washington (4-7) leads the NFC East field, but the Giants have a tiebreaker based on their sweep this season. If they win, they’ll be at the top of the division – at least until Monday night, when the Eagles (3-6-1) face the Seahawks.

“When the stakes are high I think it brings out the best in everyone, it brings out the truth in everyone,” said security veteran Logan Ryan. “To have meaningful games in November, you have to play games in September and October. We had to go through that, we had to take our bumps and bruises and lick our wounds, and you’ve got to learn something from that. ”

What the giants need to show they know now is how to get out of their bye with the rust already shaken off.

“Everyone has a week off at some point,” the judge said. “We’re not ruling anything out by just saying something is going to be an excuse. We must use it to our advantage. It’s up to us to come and play with the right mentality. ”

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