EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. -- At the quarter mark of their season, this much is obvious: The New York Giants are a franchise headed to nowhere. They’ve changed coaches (multiple times in the past few years), have a new general manager and boast plenty of shiny, explosive weapons.

It all means nothing at this point. All the changes have done nothing to alter the perception or their fate. In fact, it has only been further validated.

The Giants (1-3) are meandering in the wilderness of insignificant teams after their latest loss, a 32-18 setback at MetLife Stadium to the New Orleans Saints. Barring a miraculous turnaround, they seem destined to miss the playoffs for the sixth time in seven years with a flawed roster, stumbling offense and aging quarterback. Not exactly an encouraging trifecta.

Eli Manning is 37. He had his third unimpressive game out of four this season. It’s really just an extension of the previous two seasons, when the Giants have been unable to produce any sort of consistent offense. Manning went 31-of-41 for 255 yards and a touchdown. A good chunk of that came in the final minutes when the game was effectively over. Manning has four touchdown passes in four games. That's not good enough in today's NFL.

Saquon Barkley managed only 44 rushing yards against the Saints. Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports

“We didn’t make enough plays,” coach Pat Shurmur said after Sunday’s loss.

He later added: “I thought [Manning] did a lot of good things. He’ll come up and tell you he missed some things, but he battled through it.”

Manning isn't helped by a porous offensive line or an inconsistent run game. They can all share in the blame for this mess. It has reached the point where even Giants fans seem fed up with the offense and, more aptly, the direction of the franchise. Boos rained down after a third-and-long Manning checkdown in the third quarter. They resurfaced at times in the fourth when the Saints fans seemed to take over the stadium.

After four weeks, the Giants are already in last place in the NFC East. Right back where they ended last year.

They are 0-1 in the division and 0-2 in the conference. More importantly, they are a team with too many holes to see them turning it around anytime soon.

“You just keep working,” Shurmur said. “You just keep working and you play your way out of it and you coach your way out of it. Period.

NFL scores, standings and more Everything you need this week:

• 2018 playoffs coverage »

• Full schedule » | Full standings »

• 2019 draft order: Every first-round pick »

More NFL coverage »

“That’s what you do, and that’s the reality of it, and that’s what I trust our guys and our coaches will do.”

It all started so promisingly for the Giants on Sunday, too. They marched 75 yards on their opening drive for a touchdown. Then they went into a coma, totaling 22 yards the remainder of the first half against a defense that had struggled so mightily the first three weeks of the season. The Saints were allowing 34.3 points per game after their first three games.

The Giants managed 16, at home, in ideal conditions on Sunday afternoon. It was the third time in four games this season that the Giants didn't score 20 points.

This was the 37th straight game the Giants failed to score 30 points. Twenty-two teams have already done it this season. The last time they topped 30 was two coaches ago, when Tom Coughlin was still in charge. It’s almost as if they’re in denial their current offensive struggles are an extension of the past.

“No, I think we have talent and we just have to put it all together,” Manning said.

Their short-handed defense scratched and clawed to keep the high-octane Saints in check. James Bettcher’s crew kept the Giants in the game much like it has done in every game this season. Yet it’s the offense, with all these shiny pieces, that let down the Giants.

Not even star wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. (seven catches for 60 yards) and the No. 2 overall pick in the draft, running back Saquon Barkley (10 carries for 44 yards and a touchdown), could save this bunch with Manning as its quarterback.

The frustration, naturally, is building.

“I don’t have a Richter scale of where the frustration is. But it’s definitely frustrating,” Beckham said. “You put your all into this, like I said. It’s one game we lost. You gotta put your hard hat on and go to work [Monday].”

It’s time for the Giants to take a long, hard look in the mirror. They have to figure out where this franchise is headed, who will be their quarterback, and what is a realistic timeline for them to be relevant again. Because right now, they’re not.