November swoon

Via Giants.com

By Adam Cancryn

The Giants' ensured another poor November with a loss to the Bengals this Sunday, but that's no reason to panic.

Fluttering passes, shoddy defense, drive-killing turnovers and boos reverberating throughout MetLife Stadium. It must be November in East Rutherford.

The New York Giants fell to the Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday in a game that was over just minutes after kickoff. New York gave up two quick touchdowns — including a wide-open 56-yarder to this week's Tabloid Enemy #1 — and responded over the next two hours with a series of dinks, dumps and drops that netted them next to nothing. Throw in a few bad interceptions and missed tackles, and you arrive at a 31-13 final that wasn't nearly as close as the score indicates.

The loss was the Giants' second straight this month, and the latest evidence of what remains one of the NFL's most baffling trends. Since Tom Coughlin took over as head coach in 2004, New York has christened this time of year Nosedive November. No matter their record coming in, nor their opponent, the Giants are so consistently inconsistent during this 30-day period that you can set your calendar by it.

Under Coughlin, the team is 13-21 in eight Novembers. That includes 1-2 and 1-3 in their 2007 and 2011 championship years, respectively. And this year, New York came into the month 6-2 and as talented as ever, only to fall asleep at the wheel again. Eli Manning is in the midst of the longest touchdown drought of his career. Victor Cruz, who is so good at sneaking behind secondaries, dropped a sure touchdown and finished this week with just 26 yards. The Giants' defense appeared utterly perplexed by a Bengals game plan that was just a slightly more complex version of pitch and catch.

Wideout A.J. Green sure wasn't kidding when he said there were holes in New York's secondary, but then again, all he needed to do was look at the date.

There has never been a satisfactory explanation for why the Giants lose when the leaves turn. They are notoriously fast starters, and maybe fail to adapt as other franchises adjust and gain steam later in the season. But the good news is that there is just one November game left, and history shows that things get a little better in December. Come the playoffs, their resume stands on its own. In the start-and-stop world of the NFL, you take a fast starter and fast finisher over midseason strength every time.

So a little perspective, Giants fans. As the only NFC East team above .500, this swoon has done little to damage their playoff hopes. There's no need to call for Coughlin's firing, though history has also taught us that is inevitable. There's no need to whine about Bradshaw or Cruz, though what is perhaps the most shortsighted fan base this side of the Yankees surely has done so already. (A fan tweet timestamped about midway through the fourth quarter called for for the Giants to dump all three Super Bowl linchpins, and bring in Bill Cowher.) For all the ugliness this past Sunday, little has changed.

These are the Giants, winners of two Super Bowls, masters of the hot streak. They are as talented and confident as any top team. They will still be here when it all comes down to the wire, and they will be at their best. Right now, it's only November, so take a deep breath. The best months are yet to come.

Adam Cancryn is a co-founder and editor of Began in '96.