Zero and Two? Don’t Tell the Giants a Turnaround isn't Possible

The stats and the odds say a team is pretty much finished if it starts out 0-2. But don't tell the New York Giants that.

The New York Giants are 0-2, a start that, if it feels familiar, it’s because the franchise has recorded that record in seven of its last eight season starts, including the last four in a row.

But while statistics generally don’t favor a team recovering from an 0-2 start—since 1978 when the league went to a 16-game schedule, only 11% (36 teams, including the 2007 Giants) that started 0-2 went on to make the playoffs, don’t tell the Giants that it can’t be done.

“I don't know if I've been 0-2 before, but I was 2-4 last year, and I was in the AFC Championship, said defensive back Logan Ryan, referring to his time with eh Tennessee Titans. “If you have a strong locker room, if you have strong leaders, if you have guys that love to play ball and love to practice hard, you can dig yourself out of some holes.”

Ryan revealed that the Giants are so determined to continue their fight that before the start of Wednesday’s practice, many guys were out on the field as much as a half-hour early. He also revealed that more guys have come to work earlier in the morning to get an extra lift in and take care of some of the little details necessary to give themselves the best possible chance of winning.

Doing all the little things behind the scenes is a start, but Ryan realizes it won’t mean anything if that effort doesn’t transfer to the field.

“It's the work ethic, it's the practices, it’s how hard this team works, it’s how close we are, but we need to finish,” he said. “We need to start better. It just putting four quarters together. I mean, this team is working hard. [The opponents are] not out working us; I promise you that.”

Outworked or not, the fact remains that the Giants are 0-2, which Ryan said is horrible. But in looking at the bigger picture, he also said that the hole the Giants are currently in isn’t insurmountable.

“I think we're a game out of the division, and it’s not like our division is world-beaters at the moment. So we're a game out from being a division leader,” he said. “It's football, man. You got to keep playing the games. You got to get over the tough losses. And the beautiful thing about Tuesday and Wednesday and football is you turn your page the next week.

“We're focused on the 49ers who are coming off of some bad news on their side of things. They're coming through some adversity as well. So I'm excited to go out there and get a win. I view this game as one. I want to win really bad, and I'm doing everything in my power to lead the team in that way.”