Odell Beckham Jr. was the one to make news with his post-bye pronouncement that the Giants could run the table the second half of the season.
As it turns out, he wasn't the only one who felt that way.
"That's the mindset of everybody in the room," fellow Giants receiver Sterling Shepard said Monday. "He just came out and said it."
Beckham raised eyebrows and stoked plenty of skepticism among even the most ardent Giants fans when he spoke openly about winning eight in a row after the Giants came back from their bye week at 1-7 and seemingly out of the NFC East race. But those inside the locker room apparently felt the same way, even if they chose not to articulate it.
And while no one else has been willing to actually talk openly about winning out and thereby having a shot at making the playoffs, Beckham's bold statement has resonated among his teammates. After back-to-back wins over the 49ers and Buccaneers, the Giants now find themselves three games behind first-place Washington with six games to play.
The Redskins (6-4) are now without starting quarterback Alex Smith, who suffered a gruesome leg injury in Sunday's loss to the Texans, as they prepare for a Thanksgiving showdown against the 5-5 Cowboys in Dallas. The Eagles (4-6), coming off a thrashing in New Orleans, are now just one game ahead of the Giants.
Legitimate hope for the Giants? Or a case of wishful thinking?
Give it three weeks, and we'll have a better answer about whether they can truly think about making a run at the divisional title. Or whether they're delusional.
At Philadelphia. Home to Chicago. At Washington.
Therein lies the key to whether the stretch run to the playoffs will include the Giants as a contender. Or whether they're pretenders after enjoying what would amount to a sugar high after wins over two mediocre teams in the 49ers and Buccaneers.
Come out of the next stretch of NFC games _ including two divisional matchups _ at 3-0, and then this thing will continue to be more interesting by the day. Even winning two out of three could keep the Giants competitive, especially if the race tightens because of the Redskins' quarterback situation. Go 1-2 or 0-3, then it's really over.
Coach Pat Shurmur embraces the notion that there's still a chance, and he's rightfully appreciative of his players for not folding after going into the bye at 1-7. This team hasn't quit, nor has it fractured from within. And winning two games in a row for the first time since the latter part of the 2016 season has at least added a measure of self-respect.
"I feel like we go into every game like we're going to try to win it, and I feel like we can win it if we play well," Shurmur said Monday. "I'm looking forward to Philadelphia. They took it to us the first game, and we did some things in that game that you can't do if you want to win."
The 34-13 loss to the Eagles on Oct. 11 was the only real clunker of the season for the Giants, who were thrashed at home by the defending Super Bowl champions despite a brilliant individual performance by running back Saquon Barkley. But with a chance for retribution on Sunday at Lincoln Financial Field, the Giants face an Eagles team decimated by injuries, especially on defense, and coming off a humiliating 48-7 loss to the Saints in New Orleans.
Shurmur takes nothing for granted, though.
"They're a good team," he said. "They certainly have had their struggles of late, they've got injuries, but I'm looking forward to playing them."
"We have to focus on doing whatever it takes, whether it's by 40 (points) or three or one," Barkley said. "Whatever it takes to come out of Philadelphia with a win. They got us earlier in the season, so we've got to get 'em back."
A win over the Eagles would put both teams at 4-7, and they'd either be two or three games off the divisional lead based on the Redskins-Cowboys result. With the Giants facing Washington and Dallas once more, fate is still at least somewhat in their own hands.
All they ask for is a chance.
They earned that much with two straight wins, but the margin for error remains razor thin.
