Greater Western Sydney's opposition analysis this week will double as a reminder of how emphatically and suddenly an AFL club can find form.
GWS, desperate to snap a three-match losing streak, host Essendon at Spotless Stadium on Saturday.
Both teams figured in most pundits' top-eight predictions but currently sit in the bottom half of the ladder.
The gap between the Bombers' best and worst this year has been immense. They ended a four-game losing streak and eased pressure on coach John Worsfold last Saturday, toppling Geelong by 34 points.
Essendon's swift ball movement and frenzied tackling was a far cry from that in the preceding shock loss to Carlton.
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The Giants, down on confidence and in the midst of an injury crisis, are aiming for a similar turnaround after a 43-point loss to North Melbourne in Hobart.
"If it was a switch then everybody would flick the switch whenever they lose a game," GWS coach Leon Cameron told reporters.
"Saturday night is going to be a huge challenge. The Bombers have obviously got a huge amount of confidence back, the way they played against the Cats.
"There's examples like that all over the AFL. Sides have been down for two, three or four weeks then they have this ability to change.
"We're the club that is going through that at the moment and we're confident we can come out of it at the other end."
Cameron highlighted Essendon's fierce pressure as the most impressive aspect of their last-start win.
The Giants are down on confidence and in the midst of an injury crisis, while Cameron has called on his leaders to stand up.
"It's not just one thing. It's a number of things," Cameron said.
"I'm really confident that what we served up in patches in the last few weeks is good enough to go with a lot of these teams and win these games."
Young gun Lachie Whitfield highlighted ball movement as the Giants' biggest concern, but insisted they will fix things quickly.
"Every team goes through these sort of form slumps at times. You've got to train yourself out of it, work hard," Whitfield said.
