The New York Giants are 5-1, among the best teams in the NFL and face an upcoming four-game stretch in which they could very well go 4-0.
So, how do they avoid getting overconfident? How do they prevent themselves from thinking so far ahead? And how do they forget about their winning record?
All of that comes easy, says wide receiver Darius Slayton. After all, they’ve had a lot of practice in recent years.
“I don’t think it will (be discussed) mostly because we have experience of ignoring our record for bad reasons,” Slayton told reporters with a laugh. “That experience is probably going to pay off if we continue this trend and later on in the season of just ignoring and keep playing ball, keep playing good ball and the results take care of itself.”
Still, Slayton says, it’s much more satisfying to ignore a good record than a bad one.
“Much better to ignore a good one, I can attest,” he added.
Slayton also notes that despite the team’s early success, the players aren’t looking ahead. They aren’t obsessed with the division or conference standings and are instead just staying focused on the next opponent.
“We are all on the same page of just taking it one week at a time and focusing on the opponent we have ahead of us,” Slayton said. “Obviously, this week is Jacksonville and just trying to go 1-0 every week.”
The Giants realize that 5-1 means nothing if they start stacking losses.
“It doesn’t matter if we don’t take care of business on Sunday. That’s what we’re just trying to focus on,” linebacker Oshane Ximines said. “We’re just focused on the next game, which is Jacksonville. We just try to stick to that and try not to look too far ahead.”
