So let me get this straight.
The Giants get blown out by the Bucs on Monday Night Football thanks to a complete collapse by all phases of the ball, and they rise in the weekly MMQB power rankings three spots (from No. 27 to No. 24).
This week they beat the Eagles--barely, but still, a win's a win--and they go right back to No. 27 in the latest power ranking poll?
Notes Albert Breer in this week's write-up:
Give them this: The loss to the Bucs, added to the staff changes last week, could’ve made for a no-show against the Eagles. And that didn’t happen.
Eh, okay.
Seriously, though, I'm not sure what anyone was expecting. Yes, the Giants made a change at offensive coordinator, firing Jason Garrett and replacing him with Freddie Kitchens. But did anyone realistically expect the offense to undergo a major makeover beyond a few tweaks here and there?
Even Giants head coach Joe Judge warned last week that such a dramatic change wouldn't be realistic for an offense that is averaging 18.4 points per game, slightly better than the 17.5 it averaged all of last year.
But Judge is confident that things will improve.
"I think as we go through the remainder of the season, there’s going to be a little bit of evolution just with the usage of our players and the personalities of some of the coaches within the play calling and the development of the game plan will probably come on out," he said.
"I’m not going to sit here and tell you that it’s going to be flipped on its head immediately, but over the course of time that will naturally take place."
But back to the power rankings, a win is a win, and hey, how about a bit of love for the defense, which, except for the Bucs blowout loss, has been lights out over the last few games?
Since getting back in the lab and streamlining things for the defensive players, defensive coordinator Patrick Graham's unit has allowed 15.2 points per game, generated 11 turnovers and 11 sacks, and has held opposing quarterbacks to a 58 percent completion rate.
Reminder: Those numbers include the Tampa Bay blowout.
That said, with the season now more than halfway through and the Giants still very much in the hole they dug for themselves, nothing short of a mini-run straight to a playoff berth--a longshot, but still a mathematical possibility--is going to move the needle in terms of respect and power rankings for these Giants.
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