THE New York Giants fell to 2-6 on the season after a 26-18 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers on Monday night. It was another winnable game that eluded them.

Veterans such as Dexter Lawrence, Brian Burns and Greg Van Roten pushed the younger players during and after the game to step up their efforts. Either their words fell on deaf ears, or this team simply isn’t ready to win on its current form.

The latter is probably the answer. The Giants made the same mistakes they’ve been making for years, playing just well enough to fail.

“The team has to grow,” said Burns, a former Pro Bowl edge player whom the Giants traded last offseason, via New Jersey Advanced Media.

Burns called the situation “frustrating.”

“For me, it’s about more than effort,” Burns said of what he thinks the team needs. “I feel like the guys are playing hard. I think it just comes down to details and being very thorough in your work…Things that don’t go the way you want and changes in “Momentum can cause people to miss details.”

Lawrence also showed his frustration after the match.

The game was tied at halftime at 9-9 and was within reach if the Giants had wrapped up their affairs better.

“I’m a passionate guy and I’m very invested in this game,” Lawrence said. “I expect a lot back – and that my teammates also give a lot to the game. I think I’m a little frustrated because we are a good team and we continue to fight every week.

“We can’t have that – and I’ve talked about it. We just have to be mentally locked into every play – not just playing here and there. That’s where my frustration comes from. On game days we have to show up .”

The time to show up may have passed for the Giants this season. There are nine games left and they may have to win them all to even think about making the playoffs.

But the playoffs may never have been a reasonable expectation for this team all along. They don’t do many things well and whatever went well didn’t last very long.

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This article was originally published on Giants Wire: Giants’ Brian Burns: This team needs to ‘grow up’