Giants Face Do-or-Die in Philadelphia

The New York Giants came into the season with high expectations. Defensive end Jason Pierre-Paul even commented "as long as we all work together, we'll be undefeated." But after two games, the Giants are 0-2, the fan base is torn on who to blame, and the offense can't sustain any success.

Starting 0-2 is far from a death sentence. The Giants also lost their first two games in 2007, when they would go on to defeat the undefeated New England Patriots in the Super Bowl. On the other hand, a slow start turned to an 0-6 death sentence for the 2013 Giants.

But these 2017 Giants have talent, and a real chance at making noise in the playoffs this year. That is, if they can turn things around quickly. Offensively, Eli Manning has a slew of weapons in the recovering Odell Beckham Jr., the newly added Brandon Marshall, sophomore Sterling Shepard, rookie tight end Evan Engram, and versatile back Shane Vereen. On defense the team can be flat out scary at full strength. Janoris Jenkins, Eli Apple, and All-Pro Landon Collins round out the NYPD: New York Pass Defense. And their job in the secondary is made even easier by a capable pass-rush consisting of JPP, Oliver Vernon, and Damon "Snacks" Harrison.

With such a talented roster, the Giants will be blowing an opportunity at a special season if they can't turn it around soon. Very soon, as in, this week in Philadelphia.

On one hand, the Giants could be tied for first place by the end of Week 3. A victory over the Eagles coupled with losses by the Redskins and Cowboys would set the entire division at 1-2.

On the other hand, a loss in Philadelphia would push the Giants to 0-3. The Eagles would be 2-1, and the Cowboys and/or Redskins could join them. This would also put New York at 0-2 in divisional play, an extremely important tiebreaker in a division that should come down to the wire.

Would going 0-3 eliminate any shred of hope for the Giants to make the playoffs? No. But it would make it an extreme uphill battle to even work back to a winning record. The Giants still have to travel to Tampa Bay, Oakland, Denver, and Arizona. While all are winnable games, none will come easy. The Giants also host the Seattle Seahawks, as well as all three NFC East opponents before the season ends.

On paper, the Giants would be favored in most of these match-ups if they were in mid-season form. But if the offense keeps putting up embarrassing attempts, it's going to be a long season. The Giants must defeat their NFC East rival Eagles this week to stay relevant in the season moving forward.

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