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Giants (7-4) vs Redskins
(5-6)
Last week the Giants trounced the
Packers 38-10 and showed the national audience that they can be
the same team they were last year when they took things all the
way. They've beaten two of the three teams they faced in the playoffs
last year and Atlanta is next in two weeks time.
The Redskins won against the
Cowboys last Thursday 38-31 and that has given them extra time
to tune up for this game against the Giants. They're coming off
two straight division wins and looking for a third to give them
a 3-1 record and leave the Giants at 2-3 in the NFC East.
Washington Redskins.
They've had great success coming
off a 5-11 season. Strangely two of those five wins were over
the Giants and they had losses in the rest of their division games
to the Cowboys and Eagles. So far this year that's been reversed
as this improved Redskins team has taken a loss to the Giants
and beaten their other two familiar rivals. A win over the Giants
here is real big as a casual look at the Redskins schedule shows
they could go 3-1 with the Ravens, Browns, Eagles and Cowboys
coming up next. The Giants face tougher competition with the Saints,
Falcons, Ravens and Eagles and might split. If something like
that happens, the Redskins and Giants would be tied at 9-7, but
if the Redskins have a better division record, they would win
out.
Redskins Offense.
Robert Griffin III is
having an outstanding year. The rookie quarterback has thrown
4 touchdown passes in each of the last two games to give him a
total of 16 on the year. He's also rushed for 642 yards, crossing
the goal line for 6 more touchdowns. Griffin averages 6.4 yards
a carry, but did even better than that in his last outing against
the Giants. He came away with 89 yards on the ground on 9 carries
and running back Alfred Morris added another 120 yards which is
still his highest output to date.
Griffin and Morris confuse defenses with play action, misdirection,
and gadget plays. Tight end Logan Paulson has replaced Fred Davis
who was placed on injured reserve and he has 12 catches in the
last four games. Santana Moss is their top receiver with 416 yards
and 7 touchdowns. Pierre Garcon, coming off a great year for the
Colts, but dealing with a foot injury that's had him missing games,
surprised the Cowboys last week and he greatly improves their
downfield threat.
Redskins Defense.
This defense is very good
at stopping the run and they are ranked 3rd in that area. The
Cowboys tried only 11 rushing attempts against
them last game. Instead Tony Romo threw 62 passes for 441 yards
and 3 touchdowns, but two interceptions did him in. Pass defense
is their weakness and they are ranked 31st in that area. Linebacker
Ryan Kerrigan is their best pass rusher and he leads the team
with 6.5 sacks.
Former Giants nose tackle Barry Cofield has 1.5 sacks and he puts
the most hits on opposing quarterbacks. Middle
linebacker London Fletcher is in his 15th year and knows all the
tricks. Fletcher leads the team with 127 tackles. He does have
a bad ankle and that could be a factor. Cornerback DeAngelo Hall
leads the team with four interceptions and says his defense matches
up well against the Giants. Hall says not to expect blown coverage
like that one that gave the Giants their win this time out.
Giants Offense.
Eli Manning and his offensive
unit showed what they can do when they 'play like champions' as
they did last week against Green Bay. You know gloves are off
when you see Manning scrambling up the middle, shoulder blocking
the defense for 13 yards on a 3rd and 7 play, to insure making
a first down. Third downs have been a problem of late, but that
was erased last game with Manning
going 6-for-7 for 82 yards and 3 touchdowns on third down plays.
Hakeem Nicks had five catches and one touchdown and says he feels
his speed is coming back. Victor
Cruz had 3 catches and one touchdown and figures the Redskins
will be gunning for him since he and Manning hooked up for a 77
yard game winning touchdown last time at MetLife Stadium. With
running back Andre Brown out on short-term injured reserve, the
Giants Ahmad Bradshaw will be teamed with rookie David Wilson
against a very strong run defense. Wilson had 6 carries for 13
yards and caught one pass for five yards last week. He has a national
platform to show what he can do.
Giants Defense.
The pass rush was back against
the Packers last week. They were able to take Aaron Rodgers down
five times and kept constant pressure on him, sacking or hitting
him on more than half his passing plays. It was the highest percentage
a quarterback has been pressured in any one game this season.
Last time against Griffin they came away with an interception
and three sacks while forcing and recovering three fumbles. Justin
Tuck, Osi Umenyiora and Jason Pierre-Paul all got to him. Since
then the Redskins are 2-2, and even counting in those two losses,
Griffin has thrown 9 touchdowns against only 1 interception.
The defense will be facing a talented quarterback who's been playing
with a hot hand over these last two games, and now Pierre Garcon
is a factor to be dealt with in the secondary. He did not play
in their last matchup. Having veteran safety Kenny Phillips back
and using the three - sometimes four - safety look worked well
for the Giants last week and they'll try to confuse Griffin with
it. Stopping the Redskins running game is another issue. Alfred
Morris and his mobile quarterback buddy did most of the damage
as their offense cut through the Giants defense for 248 rushing
yards last time.
UPDATE - Safety Kenny Phillips is listed as doubtful.
Overall
The Giants have experienced Robert Griffin III firsthand and now
know what to expect. They have all that film footage to review
and see how they may have mishandled him the first time around.
The Redskins know all about this Giants team and they took their
best shot last time and came up short. Robert Griffin III said
this week, "We control our own destiny, so it's up to us."
He's almost right. It's also up to the Giants.
NFC East
The Eagles (3-8) travel to play the Cowboys (5-6) in a Sunday
night matchup at 8:20pm. The Cowboys are favored to win. The Giants
are favored to win their game against Washington on Monday night.
Check out.
The Team
Giants Store, and see some of the really unique items we put together.
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Giants DVDs
and Posters.
TeamGiants on Twitter.Notes.
Giants Eli Manning threw a
77 yard touchdown pass to Victor Cruz in the last game against
Washington.
Giants Eli Manning now has 200 touchdown
passes, one more than Phil Simms.
Redskins Robert Griffin III needs
just 64 rushing yards to tie the rookie record for quarterbacks
set last year by Carolina's Cam Newton.
Redskins RG3, after playing the Cowboys,
led the NFL in touchdown passes of 25 yards or longer.
Redskins London Fletcher has played
in 235 consecutive regular-season games.
Next Games
Dec 9 - Saints at Giants.
Giants Tickets - Buy
or Sell
Dec 16 - Giants at
Falcons.
Giants Tickets - Buy
or Sell
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