Team Grades: Giants Play Poorly In 20-14 Loss To Redskins

Vinatieri booted four field goals and Hasselbeck had his first 300-yard passing game in four years.

Sure, they still have a losing record.

The New York Giants could have taken serious control of the NFC East. They lost to the Washington Redskins 20 to 14 and have adversity to face.

Jay Gruden is now 8-14 at home as Head Coach of the Washington Redskins. “‘Cause I know, come late in the season, that’s the meal ticket right there”.

Five games remain and the Giants still believe they can win the NFC East, make the playoffs, get on one those rolls like they did in 2007 and 2011 and finish with a parade.

“(For) three quarters, we did nothing”, defensive end Jason Pierre-Paul said.

“I seriously can’t speak for everybody, but all I know is we fought in the second half and the first half we were just disgusted with how we played”, he said. Now the Giants, who are behind Washington courtesy of a division-record tiebreaker, face a five-game stretch that could determine not only the fate of their season but the direction of the franchise.

For head coach Tom Coughlin, today’s loss has become a disturbing trend in recent years as his team does not seem prepared to play in big games. Plus, we debate whether certain changes need to be made for the final few weeks of the season. They carried it 37 times for 161 yards in a Week 1 loss to the Miami Dolphins, then carried it 37 times for 182 yards and a pair of touchdowns in a Week 2 win against the St. Louis Rams.

DeSean Jackson, who strained his hamstring in Washington’s second series of the season and missed the next six games, has 12 catches for 212 yards and two TDs since his return. The game was the 168 overall meeting between the Redskins and Giants. And on the Giants’ first drive of the second half, Manning’s throw from the 4 was intercepted in the end zone by rookie Quinton Dunbar.

Jordan Reed had eight catches on nine targets for 98 yards.

The Giants could only manage 33 yards rushing on 13 attempts.

“It’s definitely important for Kurt Cousins to step up and not throw as many picks”, said Carter Monroe talking about the last Redskins-Giants game.

“I liked the fact that I felt Eli [Manning] felt the pressure and had to get rid of the ball a lot quicker than he wanted to on a lot of occasions”, Gruden said. “I think everyone was ready to play but we came out too slow”.

The Washington Redskins entered Sunday’s game with the New York Giants with several issues on the line. “We were on the road and that was one of the best performances we had”. But the Giants were dependent on a big turnover margin this season, so when they start to lose the turnover battle, they start to lose games.

With a 17-0 halftime lead, the Redskins held their opponent scoreless in the first half for the third time this season. But the Redskins were finally playing with a big lead against NY and were able to commit to the ground game.

Later, on first-and-10 at their own 20, Cousins threw a screen to running back Matt Jones who went 45 yards down the right sideline. They guy has to learn to keep his hands in when blocking. After the Giants marched down to the Washington 21-yard line, Manning lofted a ball to the end zone, seeming out of the reach even of the remarkable Beckham.

But don’t let the score after the first 15 minutes of play fool you: the Redskins, led by their defense, dominated the first quarter on Sunday, highlighted by two Washington interceptions.