November swoon: Will the Giants recover this time?

We have talked enough about November swoons and the New York Giants. What really matters now is whether the Giants can recover from this one.

Football Outsiders thinks the Giants will be just fine. From FO, via ESPN Insider:

There are some good indicators that suggest this year's Giants slump is somewhat different from those of past years, and the Giants will be able to turn it around and get back to their winning ways … if not against Green Bay this week, then against Washington next week.

One of the big culprits behind Big Blue's annual second-half slides is strength of schedule. Every year, it seems, the NFL gives the Giants a slate of opponents that gets much harder in November and December. Over the previous six years, the Giants' first-half opponents have had an average winning percentage of .440; their second-half opponents have had an average winning percentage of .577.

Football Outsiders projected the same problem for 2012, but it's not going to turn out that way because of certain teams (like Philadelphia) playing worse than we expected. Green Bay and Baltimore are the Giants' toughest remaining opponents. Sure, Atlanta is 9-1, but by FO ratings they aren't even one of the top 10 teams in the league; they've been skating by with very close wins over poor opponents. Overall, the Giants rank 11th in schedule strength remaining, according to our metrics. That's not easy, but it's not much harder than their schedule so far (which ranked 13th) and nowhere near as hard as some of their second-half schedules in recent years.

It is an interesting analysis, and worth the time if you have 'Insider.' Let's do this, Giants' fans. Vote in the poll and tell us whether or not you think the Giants are headed to the playoffs, or headed home early.