USA TODAY International Edition
True Giants? Final five will provide answers
Steelers up first in difficult closing stretch for streaking New York
RUTHERFORD, N. J. The EAST New York Giants have won six consecutive games to give them the second- best record in the NFC at 8- 3. The first playoff berth since the franchise’s Super Bowl- winning 2011 campaign is well within reach.
Now, however, is when the season gets real.
New York enters as daunting a final stretch as there is in the NFL. The Giants travel to face the Pittsburgh Steelers ( 6- 5) this weekend and then host the NFC East rival Dallas Cowboys, who own the best record in the league at 10- 1. It’s a two- week stretch that will answer several questions.
Most notably: Are the Giants real contenders?
“Everybody ( knows) the situation at hand,” defensive tackle Johnathan Hankins told USA TODAY Sports on Wednesday. “The month of December, we’ve gotta have it. We’re just taking it one game at a time and all that, but everybody knows the situation and the opportunity we have in front of us.”
What the Giants have is a chance at a wild- card berth and — potentially — a shot at a division title. For either of those to materialize, one group that must continue to excel is the defensive line.
“They’re a catalyst for what’s going on over there,” Steelers coach Mike Tomlin said Wednesday in a conference call. “I think the thing that’s really interesting is the way they dominated in the latter parts of the game.”
In the last three games, the Giants have sacked opposing quarterbacks 14 times and knocked them down 22 times. Before that three- week stretch, the Giants ranked last in the league in sacks.
Now? They’re tied for 13th with 25.
“We’ve got the guys on this defense that can get the job done,” Hankins said. “We’ve just got to affect ( Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger). We’ve got to get to him. We’ve got to make him feel uncomfortable. He’s such a good quarterback that, even if you do push the pocket back and get in his face, you’ve got to get him down, because if not, he can burn you.”
After that, the Cowboys boast the NFL’s third- best scoring offense ( 28.7 points per game), ranks fourth overall in offense ( 407.6 yards per game) and leads the league in time of possession per game ( 33: 11).
Dallas’ offensive line has allowed rookie quarterback Dak Prescott to get sacked just 15 times. It has opened rushing lanes that have given rookie running back Ezekiel Elliott the space needed to become the NFL’s leading rusher ( 1,199 yards).
For New York to upset Dallas, creating pressure is essential.
But even after these next two games, the path won’t get any easier.
Among teams in the NFC playoff hunt, the Giants have the toughest remaining schedule, with opponents combining for a .627 winning percentage. After facing the Cowboys in Week 14, New York then hosts the Detroit Lions ( 7- 4), before concluding its season on the road against the Philadelphia Eagles ( 5- 6) and Washington Redskins ( 6- 4- 1).
“There’s a lot of energy in the building, a lot of energy on the field,” coach Ben McAdoo told reporters after stressing the team would not peek ahead in the schedule. “We have to channel that energy into our preparation.”
The Giants still have a shot at the division crown. They’re two games behind Dallas, and the Week 14 showdown presents a chance to make up ground. And even though the Cowboys have handled nearly all the challenges they have faced, they have a tough road ahead, too.
And New York remains the only team that has defeated the Cowboys, in Week 1, and sweeping them would provide a crucial tiebreaker.
First, however, come the Steelers.
“Every game gets more important as the season goes on,” rookie cornerback Eli Apple told USA TODAY Sports. “We just have to make sure that we are making those strides. We know that we set goals at the beginning of the season, and we bring them up. Get better every game. Just get better.”