Giants players discuss not giving up amid lost season

While speaking with reporters on Thursday, rookie wide receiver Malik Nabers insisted he believes "the sky’s the limit for" a 2-13 New York Giants team on track to "earn" the No. 1 pick of the 2025 NFL Draft. 

Teammates such as veteran wide receiver Darius Slayton discussed why they refuse to give up and go through the motions over the final two weeks of what could go down as the worst campaign in franchise history. 

"Just cherishing every opportunity you have," Slayton said about his mindset, ESPN's Jordan Raanan shared. "Football, one day, will come to an end. Regardless of your predicament, you have two more opportunities to go out there and play the game you love. So gotta take advantage of it."

Slayton, Nabers and others didn't directly say on Thursday they will do whatever possible, beginning with Sunday's home finale versus the 7-8 Indianapolis Colts, to convince Giants co-owner John Mara he should retain both general manager Joe Schoen and head coach Brian Daboll for another season. At least Daboll could be fired as soon as Monday, but his players indicated this week they won't be making any "business decisions" against the Colts or during the Week 18 matchup at the Philadelphia Eagles.

"You try to play as hard as you can and don't let this get you down and put bad tape out there because, at the end of the day, every single team is watching," said Giants offensive tackle Jermaine Eluemunor. "Some guys may not be here next year, but by the way they're playing now, it may open up doors later in their careers because of how they played. The things they can get out of this is keep playing as hard as you can, and when the opportunity is there, take it and run with it."

Fellow tackle Evan Neal challenged teammates "to figure out a reason to play every week" through the first weekend of January. While it's admirable that he and others in the locker room are still chasing wins, the harsh truth is that the Giants lack talent on both sides of the ball and, in Raanan's words, are "overmatched" against even average opponents. 

According to ESPN stats, Big Blue began Friday averaging a league-worst 14.3 points scored per game for the season. Week 1 starting quarterback Daniel Jones is now with the Minnesota Vikings, and many outsiders believe Mara has yet to hire the regime to fix the Giants. 

As of Friday morning, DraftKings Sportsbook listed the Giants as 7.5-point underdogs against the Colts. New York players said only the right things about preparing for that game, but how they perform at MetLife Stadium could ultimately determine if Daboll is permitted to at least close out the season with his current employer.