LANDOVER, Md. — John Harbaugh summed it up perfectly, or at least he tried to, after the Giants traveled to Washington, played the Commanders in a monsoon, and tied.
There were moments of dysfunctional, unsightly football. Excitement and euphoria. Super highs. Gut-wrenching lows. Culminating in a 27-27 final.
“I’m happy it wasn’t a loss,” said the coach. “I’m sad it wasn’t a win.”
The truth really is somewhere in the middle. For the Giants, though, it’s hard not to err more on the side of optimism.
They are not Super Bowl contenders. They are not ready to run away with the wide-open NFC East. They have their flaws.
But it’s very clear, through the first five weeks, they aren’t the team they’ve been the past few years. That’s truly all that matters.
Compare these Giants to the ones run by Brian Daboll … or Joe Judge … or Pat Shurmur … or Ben McAdoo and there are so many ways this game never reaches its tied conclusion.
Jameis Winston, and his 57.3 first-half passer rating, never finds his rhythm. The Commanders’ 12-3 halftime lead is the start of an onslaught.
Jayden Daniels‘ 26-yard touchdown run, giving the Commanders a 14-point, fourth-quarter lead, the nail in the coffin.
That Isaiah Likely goal-line dive is a fumble. Darnell Mooney not getting on the field is a penalty, not a Malik Nabers touchdown.
The Giants were not a team built to handle adversity — it suffocated them in painstaking fashion like a plague. Time and time and time again.
But these Giants are different. A month-plus of football is enough a sample size to state that.
No matter what happens throughout those 60 minutes — or, in Sunday’s case, an extra 10 — they don’t die. They keep fighting, clawing.
They don’t care if they’re without Jaxson Dart and Brian Burns. They believe.
Even self-inflicted wounds are minor obstacles eventually maneuvered.
“Show our identity,” said Abdul Carter, who had a sack and four hurries. “We have to keep being strong, keep being resilient.”
That same Winston who was so miserable in the first half completed 21 of 28 passes in the second half for 211 yards and three touchdowns. He finished 33 of 54 (61.1 percent) for 326 yards.
Nabers, who voiced his frustrations after being phased out of the offense a week ago versus Arizona, caught 11 (on 20 targets) for 121 yards and a score.
Likely, who looks like the offseason’s best free-agent signing, caught 11 for 94 and a pair of scores.
After the defense allowed back-to-back Daniels touchdown runs of 26 and 38 yards, they tightened. Washington punted on its next three possessions as the Giants mounted their comeback.
Then came overtime. The Giants got the ball first. They got into field goal range. Dominic Zvada missed a 46-yard field goal — his third of the day.
Again: A moment that demoralizes the Giants to the point they watch the Commanders drive right down the field. Instead, the defense forced another punt.
The Giants offense got it back. They got even closer. Then Skattebo’s fourth fumble of the season gave the ball back to Washington.
Another opportunity for a demoralizing defeat. Washington reached the Giants’ 24-yard line. But then, just as the Giants’ defense did against Tennessee and Arizona, it made a play.
Daniels took the snap and looked left, trying for a few more yards near the sideline. Kayvon Thibodeaux dropped into his throwing lane and Daniels had to keep it.
He got down too late and time ran out. A grotesque self-inflicted wound the Giants were well accustomed to.
Only now, the team that harps situation football time and time again in practice, knew exactly what was happening as the Commanders failed to get the play off.
“It wasn’t a win, it wasn’t a loss,” Likely said. “But it definitely was a blessing.”
This shouldn’t be treated like a win and, while the locker room was absolutely more upbeat, wasn’t.
The Giants had a chance to take a two-game lead in the NFC East with a win. Instead, they’re up 1.5 on the freefalling Eagles, bad Commanders and diabolical Cowboys.
ut this also wasn’t a game the Giants ever truly felt like they should win. The early game ineptitude. Skattebo’s fumble. The Daniels touchdown runs.
Still, they somehow fought their way back. The Giants’ “D” game resulted in a tie.
“We got guys that are up early in the morning trying to figure out ways to win,” Nabers said.
The Giants are building something — a testament to their head coach. They have a direction and aren’t veering off course.
This was a detour, but still, you get the sense this team continues headed the right way.
Clean up. Advance. But this, much like so many of their wins, feels like something to build off of.
“Someone explained it to us as a lesson,” said Skattebo, who took 13 carries for 59 yards before his costly fumble. “We could have fixed some things. I gave up the ball at the end there. There are lessons that were taught to us today, and especially me.
“Once we get past that and we learn from those, get them fixed, then it’s a different ballgame.”