Giants Not Relying On Help From Rivals
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. (CBSNewYork/AP) — For a couple of minutes Sunday afternoon, the bye week almost turned into a bonanza for the New York Giants.
Sitting in front of their televisions, everything was going right.
Dallas was losing to Minnesota 23-20 and had 90 yards to go to take the lead. Washington was up three against San Diego, but the Chargers had the ball at the Redskins 1 with a first-and-goal late.
If the Cowboys didn't come back and Washington lost, the Giants (2-6) would be 1 ½ games out of first place in the NFC East despite an 0-6 start. The hope for a miracle comeback would be stronger.
It wasn't to be. Dallas (5-4) rallied. Washington (3-5) won in OT. Even Philadelphia (4-5) won at Oakland, leaving the Giants with the knowledge that the comeback is up to them.
"Every team is accountable for their own actions," Giants safety Antrel Rolle said. "Whatever Dallas does or Washington does or Philly does shouldn't have any effect on us, although we know it does. But we have to go out there and take care of our own business. We can't rely on anyone else."
With eight games left, the Giants probably can't lose more than one. They may need to run the table to have a shot at getting back to the postseason. They missed the playoffs last year and three of the last four.
"Create your own help," Rolle said. "That's how I look at it. Create your own help. If you can't do it by yourself, then just don't do it. That's how I feel about the game."
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"We've got to take care of our business," coach Tom Coughlin said.
Eli Manning watched the Dallas-Minnesota game before catching a flight back to New Jersey. It turned out to be a tease, along with the Redskins result.
"We knew we had a bye week and everyone else was playing, so it wasn't going to change things," Manning said. "All we can worry about is getting back to playing well and get on a hot streak and start winning games."
New York beat Minnesota and Philadelphia in the weeks before the bye and it returns with a three-game homestand against Oakland, Green Bay and Dallas.
"It's all about us," Manning added. "We can only control what we can do. It might happen some weeks that a team might lose for us. They all might win. They all might lose. If we are winning, we'll keep in distance and give ourselves a shot."
Rookie offensive lineman Justin Pugh said it was tough watching the Cowboys game, but not demoralizing. The goal is to improve and to continue to fight.
"If we can make this run, we are going to be a scary team," said Pugh, the No. 1 draft pick who has started every game at right tackle. "No one expects it. Everyone has kind of counted us out. Everyone in this locker room is together."
Veteran cornerback Terrell Thomas just checks the scores after the games on Sunday, opting not to ride the television roller coaster on game day. He recalled two weeks ago when Dallas seemingly had a win against Detroit wrapped up and lost in the final seconds. The opposite happened to it against Minnesota.
"We can't control what they do," Thomas said. "All we control is us. Hopefully we get some help down the road, but right now, we're focused on the Raiders."
Placekicker Josh Brown didn't get a chance to watch any football Sunday. He was home with his family.
"I watched high school football," he said. "My oldest son is in high school and I got to watch his last freshman game and that was really good. Nine tackles. Two for losses"
Proud parent!
NOTES: Running back Andre Brown, who broke a leg in the final preseason game, expects to be activated this week. Second-year running back David Wilson, who has not played since Oct 6 because of a neck injury, had an MRI on Monday. Dr. Russell Warren and Dr. Frank Cammisa felt Wilson has made significant improvement with the herniation, but he is not clear to play. Wilson will undergo another evaluation in several weeks, the team said.
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