That’s what the game on Sunday felt like: A waste. The defense was outstanding, holding the Rams to just 240 yards and 17 points, stopping them on all but one broken play that turned into a 55-yard touchdown from Jared Goff to Cooper Kupp. They gave the Giants offense chance after chance to get things going. One sustained drive anywhere could’ve been enough for a win.

It’s pathetic that they couldn’t manage to do that.

It’s also par for the course.

“We’ve got to score more points,” said Giants quarterback Daniel Jones. “I think we all realize that.”

Of course they do, because it’s not like they could score much less. Through four games, the Giants are averaging 11.75 points – an insanely low total in an era where offenses are exploding and teams are lighting up the scoreboard in historic fashion. That’s bad even for a Giants team that hasn’t had an offense ranked in the top half of the league since 2015, when Ben McAdoo was calling the plays as Tom Coughlin’s offensive coordinator.

No one thought it was going to be easy for the Giants without Saquon Barkley.

But come on, it shouldn’t be this hard.

Blame whomever or whatever you want – the offensive line, Daniel Jones, offensive coordinator Jason Garrett. They all share a piece in this disaster. Injuries to Barkley and receiver Sterling Shepard are factors, too. But NFL teams overcome adversity. The Giants, meanwhile, have reacted to their adversity with no touchdowns and 18 total points in the last two games.

So what’s wrong? Joe Judge gave his usual postgame answers, which is a combination of saying he needs to go back and look at the film and putting on a bizarrely happy face. He said he “was proud of the way we moved the ball today” even though his offense couldn’t reach the 300-yard mark (295). He even said his offensive line was “an improved unit” even though they gave up five sacks and countless other quarterback hits.

Judge wants to be Mr. Positive postgame and that’s fine – though at 0-4, it’s an act already in danger of wearing thin. But he knows the truth: There isn’t much to be positive about when it comes to this offense. Defensive coordinator Patrick Graham really has done an incredible job with a unit that had been a disaster for several seasons and lost some key pieces in the secondary just before training camp started.

That defense has a right to be frustrated, even though it’s far too early for that. They said the right things after the game, including nothing about a wasted effort. They know they probably could’ve done more – like not allowing that 55-yard touchdown. As cornerback James Bradberry said, “If they don’t score, they don’t win.”

Still, going on the road and holding the Rams to 17 points should be enough for a victory. Instead, the Giants got three field goals and a terrible interception at the end of the game by Jones. In the first half, when the Giants’ defense was holding the Rams in check, opening a door that never figured to be open, their offense put up 11 total yards until they went into the two-minute drill at the end of the half.

That just can’t be the Giants offense, even without Barkley. If it is, they might be looking for a new quarterback and offensive coordinator sooner than they think. And since they’d be lucky to win four games averaging less than 12 points per game, the head coach probably shouldn’t get too comfortable, either.

They have a long way to go to turn it around, of course, but they really need to do it quickly, especially if Judge wants to keep his new “culture” intact. Because the best way to fracture a locker room is to have one side of the ball dragging the other side down.

And that’s what’s happening right now. The Giants’ offense is dragging down everyone and everything about their season. They better hope this game was rock bottom, because they really don’t want to find out how much lower they can go.

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