Coach Paul McGregor and his St George Illawarra side are refusing to get caught up in the speculation surrounding their NRL form slump.
The Dragons were sitting on top of the ladder after round 16 but a third-straight loss this weekend could see them slide out of the top four.
Their defeat to Wests Tigers last Sunday saw talk turn to whether the Dragons were about to begin another fall from grace.
McGregor's men have looked like challengers halfway through the past two seasons, only to drop off dramatically and miss the finals altogether in 2016 and 2017.
While they will start warm favourites when they play struggling North Queensland in Townsville on Saturday night, McGregor says there will be no complacency.
"I'm very confident in our own ability ... all the questions around our character from the outside doesn't concern us too much," McGregor told reporters on Thursday.
"We've lost the second one on the bounce for the first time this year.
"With that, we have to protect our character a bit.
"We're getting questioned a fair bit around our standards and our position on the ladder so we need to dedicate to this game as best we can."
But the Dragons have got through the State of Origin period unscathed and McGregor believes a road trip is the best way to reunite his team.
Ben Hunt, Tyson Frizell, Paul Vaughan and Jack de Belin are all back and ready to tackle the last seven games of the regular season.
"It's the first revision of a game we've had since round 11 as a whole team so when you have revision around a game you really take ownership and accountability around how you perform," McGregor said.
"We've got to travel up here but it's a good way for the boys to get back together and have a couple of days on the road.
"It's all positive."
Australian Associated Press
