Giants Lose to Broncos on Thanksgiving

The Giants can see the NFC East slipping away and so could the entire nation on Thanksgiving. In the Giants’ Thanksgiving night loss to the Broncos, Kyle Orton outplayed Eli Manning, Knowshon Moreno outplayed Brandon Jacobs, Brandon Marshall outplayed Steve Smith and the Broncos’ defense outplayed the Giants’ defense. This added up to a 26-6 win for the Broncos.

Both teams have had similar seasons thus far starting the season on long win streaks and struggling since. The Broncos started out 6-0 before losing four straight games before this one. The Giants started out 5-0 and have since lost five of six including the loss on Thanksgiving.

“We’re a good football team,” Osi Umenyiora told the Associated Press. “We just played bad today. …From here on out, every game is a must-win.”

The Giants can’t afford to play “bad” anymore. Not with the Cowboys and Eagles in the division. The NFC East is the most competitive division in the NFL with the AFC North a close second. The Giants’ next two games are pivotal as they host the Cowboys and Eagles in back-to-back weeks. They can either remain in the division race or fall far behind.

At 6-5, the Giants are going to need to win at least three more games to have a shot at a playoff birth. Four wins would put them at 10-6, which may lock them into a wild card. Four wins won’t be easy. After the Cowboys and Eagles, the Giants have to play the Redskins, Panthers and Vikings. None of those opponents are going to lay down for the Giants.

Tags: Brandon Jacobs, Eli Manning, Osi Umenyiora, Steve Smith