The Giants have no time to sulk over their Monday night loss to division rival Washington, because their remaining schedule is brutal — including Sunday’s matchup with the desperate Saints.
“I’m just looking at it one game at a time, [and] the one that’s right in front of you is a New Orleans team that has battled and played very well of late. That’s what we’ll focus on,” said Coughlin. “We go in knowing full well it’s a four-game season and we have to win, literally, every one of our games. That’s how I look at it. … Win the games that are presented.”
The Saints have always presented a problem under Coughlin’s watch, but those historic Big Blue meltdowns were in the comfy confines of New Orleans’ Superdome. Now that the Giants get the Saints in frigid MetLife Stadium, Coughlin hopes they can start their customary late-season run.
“I certainly think we will [play with urgency], and I hope we will, so I don’t know why we wouldn’t,” Coughlin said.
Defensive end Jason Pierre-Paul thinks Monday’s loss will be extra incentive for the Giants, as it’s their custom to rally from within when times get tough.
“We’ve been saying let’s just go out there and play like a team that’s the underdogs,” Pierre-Paul said. “That’s basically what we can do.”
Rather than talk about what they have to do, Eli Manning is keen on working hard and grinding along, starting with the Saints.
The Pro Bowl quarterback is much like Coughlin in that he doesn’t try to look ahead to the rewards — or consequences — of wins and losses, as he added it’d be futile trying to figure out how many more they need to win or how many they can’t afford to lose.
The Giants have a tough road ahead that also includes the Falcons, Ravens and bitter rival Eagles in the finale.
“We still have a lot of football left, with four games left. This is an important one, because it’s the next. So we have to worry about having great practices going in there and find a way to win,” Manning said.
Follow Giants beat writer Tony Williams on Twitter @TBone8.
