Can you hear me now?

The decibels had finally dissipated, the New York Giants retreating into the locker room after spending 3 hours and 7 minutes in the crosshairs of 68,161 fans, the largest crowd in Qwest Field history.

And while the stadium was emptying, it was the Giants who sounded hollow. The aftershocks of a 42-30 loss to the Seahawks echoed.

"We got outplayed and outcoached," tight end Jeremy Shockey said "Write that one down ... We got outplayed. There's no 12th man. There's no excuses."

That was just one snippet of a rant that will be repeated loudly this morning on the other coast — once everyone's ears stop ringing.

Qwest Field reached 117 decibels on Sunday. The Giants committed three false starts and burned one timeout. But the disappointment that echoed around the team was something that defied measurement.

"We got whupped today," tackle Luke Petitgout said.

The Giants made a rousing comeback a week ago in Philadelphia, and now they were reeling from a crushing loss. Last week was characterized as a breakthrough performance for New York. This week, the Giants were simply broken, falling behind 42-3.

"The first half, we just gave the game away," coach Tom Coughlin said. "Handed it to them. Gave them the ball at point-blank range, gave them great field position, turned the ball over. A team that does nothing but preach and talk about turnovers, we turned it over like nothing matters, nothing counts.

"It cost us the game."

Coughlin spoke for almost two minutes before he even took a question. If only his team had been so ready to get started.

Was the noise in the stadium a factor?

"It sounded like a Sunday afternoon to me," Coughlin said. "We just came from Philadelphia; it was very noisy there."

Quarterback Eli Manning agreed.

"It shouldn't have been a big deal," he said.

The league notified both the Seahawks and Giants Sunday's game would be monitored for compliance with the league's crowd-noise policy, and it mentioned an allegation the crowd sound was enhanced. The Giants were penalized for 11 false starts at Qwest Field last season.

The Giants heard the results themselves. Did the crowd play a part in an error-filled first half in which the Giants committed four turnovers and were outscored 35-3?

"Yeah, I definitely think it did," running back Tiki Barber said. "It was hard to hear, hard to concentrate."

But it was the aftershocks of this game that will resonate in New York, specifically Shockey's extended riff that began with a question aimed at Petitgout, who was at the adjacent locker.

Petitgout was asked if the comeback meant anything at all, since New York trailed 42-3 before it scored four fourth-quarter touchdowns.

"No," Petitgout said. "They were gimmes."

Shockey thought otherwise.

"When Eli gets to call his plays, get his formations, I think we play better football," Shockey said, "when he gets to decide a little bit more than just the set play, and then you get to go for it."

The Giants may not have been shouted down Sunday, but they left kicking and screaming.

Danny O'Neil: 206-464-2364 or doneil@seattletimes.com