Giants Are Playing for Progress Sunday vs. Eagles

With questions looming about the fates of head coach Pat Shurmur and his staff, his players will be focused on trying to build on their progress from the last two weeks.

The Giants players are well aware that a win Sunday against the Eagles will damage their division rivals’ chances of winning the NFC East crown.

They’re also probably aware that a win might even help embattled head coach Pat Shurmur make a stronger case to keep his job despite a disappointing two seasons.

But for the players, Sunday’s game against the Eagles is all about building on the progress they feel they have made over the last two weeks in resounding wins over Miami and Washington that has seen them score a combined 77 points.

That’s their highest two-game total scored in consecutive games since Nov. 1-8, 2015, when they scored 81 against New Orleans and Tampa Bay.

“I think we’ve been optimistic,” quarterback Daniel Jones said when asked about the future. “I think through the season we’ve played well at times. I think overall, we’ve been inconsistent, but I think we have the pieces.

“We certainly have the ability to put together a game like we did Sunday and to play even better than that. I think we’re very optimistic about going forward. The challenge is to continue to improve, and I think a win Sunday would help us keep going that direction.”

Running back Saquon Barkley said he’s been particularly impressed with how the team has stuck together despite the bad times and noted that their resiliency could very well serve as a foundation of better days to come.  

“I like the fact that even though we had a lot of adversity and the season’s not going our way, just how people come to work and how people handle themselves,” he said.

“It’s easy to give up, it’s easy not to care, but to still have that mindset and then to come out every single week and fight at a high level, even though some of those games didn’t turn out the way we’d like to, means a lot not only to me but to the team.”

Although the players are focused on building the team up, the big question after Sunday’s game will be whether Shurmur is there to continue leading the project.

Both Jones and Barkley hope that will be the case.

“I think he’s a great coach,” Jones said. “I think, particularly for a young quarterback, an opportunity to work with him, as he’s installed his offense and how he sees it and how he’s coached me has been very important to my development, as well as Coach Shula. I’m very grateful to have the opportunity to work with him.”

“I don’t only believe in Pat Shurmur, but I do believe in all the coaches,” Barkley added. 

“It’s easy to point the blame at one person, and that’s what we do. I know this business is a results business, but at the end of the day, it’s not only on one person why we haven’t been successful these last few years.”

Barkley believes if the Giants continue doing what they’ve been doing these last two weeks, eventually, it will all click.

“I believe that if we all just continue to fight and continue to fight, have that right mindset, which I do believe, and I know that we have, things are going to turn around.”