The New York Giants will host the Indianapolis Colts at MetLife Stadium in Week 17 and it’s arguably the biggest game for the franchise in six years.
A win would punch their ticket to the playoffs and guarantee an above .500 finish. Neither of those things has happened since 2016, and a playoff appearance would be just their second since winning Super Bowl XLVI at the end of the 2011 season.
The Giants obviously understand the significance of the game, which was evident by running back Saquon Barkley calling on fans to pack the stadium and get loud.
But nothing else about this week will change. Head coach Brian Daboll plans to treat this game like any other with the goal being to go 1-0 this week.
“What we can control is, again, the same stuff we try to control each week — making sure we’re prepared, ready to go and go out there and put our best foot forward,” Daboll told reporters on Monday. “I think we just try to control our own destiny each week by trying to win a game. The goal is always to try to go 1-0, and that’ll be no different this week.”
Daboll’s approach has never changed. Win, lose or draw the process remains the same, the message remains the same and the weekly schedule remains the same. Consistency is essential and no one understands that better than Daboll.
It’s something his players undoubtedly appreciate, especially since that consistency has led them here.
“As a professional, we all have a job to do. You take a lot of pride in your work, regardless of where you’re at in the season, what the records are,” Daboll said. “Everybody’s a professional in this business: myself, the coaches, the players, the scouts, you guys. We’re all professionals. I think the best thing you can do is just control what you can control, which is the things you need to control this week. All the other things, there’s no real sense. Everybody knows what the game is this week. I think what’s the most important is, ‘How do we improve our blocking, our decision making, getting off blocks, our tackling, our units?’ Everything. All that stuff is really what matters, and that’s where our focus needs to be.”
And that’s where the Giants will focus this week. They won’t be thinking about a win-and-in scenario, they’ll be thinking about improving both individually and collectively.
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