The key matchup in Sunday’s New York Giants at Arizona Cardinals NFL game (4:05 p.m. ET/CBS) is not one player vs. another or one unit of the Giants vs. it’s opposing unit from the Cardinals. In fact, it isn’t a physical matchup at all. It is a mental one.
The key matchup Sunday for the 2-1 Giants vs. the 1-2 Cardinals is the Giants against their own emotions. The Giants are coming off a monumental 29-16 victory over the NFC East rival Philadelphia Eagles, a team that had beaten them six straight times and stood in their way for the past three seasons.
Since training camp, the focus has been on finding a way to beat the Eagles. Well, mission accomplished. Now, the Giants have to move forward and that game as what coach Tom Coughlin referred to as a “springboard,” avoiding a letdown in Arizona, where the Giants are a three-point favorite.
“We are professionals and we understand that you have to take it one game at a time. We have seen a lot of different things. Getting off to great starts
and crappy endings and vice versa,” said Giants defensive end Justin Tuck. “For us it is all about taking it one game at a time.”
Easier said than done, given human nature. And an unfamiliar opponent you are expected in a road game where you won’t have your home crowd to give you a boost.
“Last Sunday was over, as far as I was concerned, Monday. We’re moving on,” said Coughlin. “We have to move on. I think our team realizes that.”
The key for the Giants on Sunday is whether or not there actions on the field reflect their promises not to let down this week.