Done Like Dinner: The G-Men

The 0-5 New York Giants travel to Chicago on Thursday to face the Bears in what was supposed to be a riveting match-up but has turned into a yawner.

Every week, the G-men keep saying it will change, but those words have been ringing hollow.

Yes, New York won the Super Bowl in 2007 and again in 2011. Those kept Tom Coughlin from losing his job when his team didn't make the playoffs in 2009, 2010, and 2012. And if you look back to both championship seasons, the Giants were lucky to even make the playoffs. There's a lot to be said about getting hot at the right time, as they could have easily been looking from the outside in during both seasons.

In 2007, the Giants started 0-2 and were 7-4 before two hard fought victories over Chicago and Philadelphia. They were then upset by Washington at home and fell behind Buffalo, 14-0 and 21-17, in a game they had to win to make the playoffs. But they did and then almost upset New England on the final day of the regular season before beating Tampa Bay, Dallas, Green Bay, and the undefeated Patriots to win their third overall Super Bowl title.

In 2011, the Giants finished only 9-7 and had to defeat the Jets and Cowboys in their final two games to make the playoffs. Once again, however, New York got on a roll in January, defeating Atlanta, Green Bay again, and San Francisco before beating the Patriots again to win the Super Bowl.

So when you here from the Giant players that they've been there before, maybe they have, but other than two great January runs, they've been a mediocre team.

This season, though, is not mediocre. It's not even horrible. It's embarrassing, and no matter what words are said, there is no way to dig out of it.

What will Victor Cruz do this week when the Giants are 0-5 and trailing by 20 at Chicago if he scores? His salsa? If so, you'll know the Giants have tanked.

When a show trumps a team's situation, that team is at the doorstep of irrelevance.