Bye Week For the New York Giants Coming At a Good or Bad Time?

When a team loses two consecutive divisional games, having an extra week off may be viewed as a positive or negative. For many, getting right back out there and trying to erase the previous eight quarters of football is the best medicine, while others may utilize the additional time off to rest some nagging injuries, watch extra game film and prepare even longer for the next opponent. Just what path the New York Giants take following their upcoming bye week may dictate the rest of their season.

Their 31-21 road loss to the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday – which followed the 27-0 defeat to the Eagles in Philadelphia – dropped the Giants record to 3-4. With the Cowboys now 6-1 and the idle Eagles 5-1, it will be a tough hill to climb for Big Blue to get themselves back into the divisional race.

The one bright spot is that the NFC is not as tough a conference as it has been the last few years, so Big Blue can still qualify for the postseason even if they finish behind one of those two teams. But that is a long shot and they would need a lot of help from other teams, a position that is not as comfortable as controlling your own destiny.

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So with little to no margin of error, the Giants head into their bye week with a lot of questions and not many answers. And the schedule does not get any easier, something that head coach Tom Coughlin addressed in his post game press conference.

"I hope we come back with great resolve after the bye and look at the opportunities that are in front of us. Obviously, we play some very, very good football teams but we continue to try to improve on the things we’re doing poorly and look forward to the opportunities that are coming ahead of us."

Here is what the Giants have coming up in their schedule the next four games: Indianapolis Colts, at Seattle Seahawks, San Francisco 49ers, Dallas Cowboys.

So the main positive is that three of the next four games are at home but the opponents are all tough. So the bye week should be welcomed at this point and used to take a step back and get a hold of things before this season completely slips away. But according to cornerback Prince Amukamara, talk like that is way too premature.

"I think the original reaction is to panic. I think this team is sticking together. We have nine games left and nobody wins this division in October. After the bye week, we just have to come prepared and come out hungry."

As professionals, the 53 men on the Giants roster want to get back out there as soon as possible and return to their winning ways. But these two losses were hard to swallow and having a chance to look back and watch the films a few extra times will only benefit them in the long run.

Especially with the road ahead.