Harbaugh Says Giants Aren’t Looking Ahead, Even as They Lead the NFC East

With the division lead in hand and a wounded Eagles team up next, the coach says the focus stays on going 1-0 every week.

New York Giants head coach John Harbaugh has his team focused on the next game and nothing else. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Every so often, New York Giants head coach John Harbaugh likes to dabble in history when he speaks to the media.

But when it comes to football, he’s less interested in the past than in the future.

That’s why Harbaugh, whose NFC East-leading Giants are getting ready for their first game after the bye, isn’t worried about his players becoming complacent about what they have accomplished so far.

“I do think that that’s definitely something to get locked in on, but I don’t believe it is this week,” he said on Wednesday as the team kicked off its preparation for Sunday’s NFC East showdown with a wounded Philadelphia Eagles team that, by the way, has beaten the Giants 13 straight times at Lincoln Financial Field.

“Although our players have mentioned it, our leaders have talked to the guys about that. We’re not really anywhere close to that yet. We’re fighting for our lives, too. We’ve got everything to gain, and we know how big this game is. We know who we’re going against. We’ll be ready.”

They need to be. Beyond the long, winless drought in the City of Brotherly Love, the Giants have a chance to keep putting space between themselves and the rest of the division, especially considering that each division game counts in the season-ending tiebreakers, the first of which is head-to-head.

And with a challenging slate of opponents coming up, starting in Week 11 when the Jacksonville Jaguars come to town, the Giants can ill afford to slip up this week or next week when they host the Washington Commanders on Thursday Night Football.

But while Harbaugh clearly knows where things stand in the division, the only thing driving him is making sure the team goes 1-0 every week.

“Yeah, we’ve got to win the game. The opportunity is the game, and within the game, the opportunity is the next play within the game, right? That’s the opportunity,” he said.

“This is the game, the game where everything is on the line. Once this game is done, it will be the next game where everything is on the line. That’s how our guys look at it, and that’s what that 1-0 T-shirt is all about.

“So, I know these guys think that way. That’s the way they think. That doesn’t guarantee you’re going to play great, but that’s their mindset going into the game.”

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