Thursday Night Football Week 4: TV Schedule, Live Stream for Giants vs. Redskins

Even though both teams are coming off impressive performances in Week 3, albeit one in defeat, New York and Washington meet at FedEx Field on Thursday Night Football with a lot to prove. 

The Giants ended their early-season misery with a victory over previously unbeaten Houston in Week 3. It still wasn't a mistake-free effort by Tom Coughlin's team, as they lost a fumble in the red zone and screwed up an easy field goal, but Eli Manning didn't turn the ball over and was sacked just once. 

Jay Gruden's team has looked much better in the last two weeks with Kirk Cousins at quarterback. They've scored 75 points and put up 960 yards against Jacksonville and Philadelphia. While neither of those defenses are going to be confused with the 1985 Bears, that's still an incredible showing by this offense. 

With Philadelphia and Dallas starting the season strong, this is a critical game in the NFC East. The loser could fall three games behind the Eagles and two games behind the Cowboys before the end of September. We've got all the information you need to know for the first game of Week 4. 

Where: MetLife Stadium

When: Thursday, September 25

Start Time: 8:25 p.m. ET

Watch: CBS and NFL Network

Live Stream: NFL.com

Spread: Washington (-3.5); Over/Under: 45.5

Odds via Odds Shark.

Biggest Question For New York

Will the Giants win the turnover battle?

Al Bello/Getty Images

There are a lot of problems facing the Giants on both sides of the ball, but the biggest problem they've had since the start of 2013 is giving away possessions. They led the NFL with 40 giveaways last season and are 29th in that category this season. 

Despite having two mistakes in critical situations last week, the Giants only had one turnover in their victory over Houston. On the defensive side, Coughlin's team forced three turnovers, all Ryan Fitzpatrick interceptions, against the Texans. 

It cannot be overstated the importance of winning the turnover battle, especially for the Giants. Bruce Beck of NBC New York tweeted out this stat about the team's success under Coughlin when the defense creates extra opportunities for its offense:

Those three turnovers in Week 3 were the first ones forced by the Giants this season. When you have an offense that is prone to making mistakes, as New York has been the last two years, it's hard to win games unless the defense is opportunistic. 

Now, the Giants are going to take on a Washington team that has only turned the ball over once in the last two weeks. One key to success will be Jason Pierre-Paul. The 25-year-old has found his old form with 1.5 sacks thus far, and he entered last week as the No. 2 4-3 defensive end against the run, according to Pro Football Focus (via Kieran Darcy of ESPN New York). 

Washington's offensive line has allowed six sacks already this season, though four of those were against Robert Griffin III, who may have been scrambling to try and make a play. Cousins has shown a willingness to throw the ball away and live to fight another play. 

Eli Manning has already thrown four interceptions this season, two in each of the first two games, and he has at least one in 15 of his last 18 games. He finally protected the ball last week, looking comfortable in Ben McAdoo's offense for the first time, and the end result was 30 points. 

Sometimes, the difference between victory and defeat is as simple as winning the turnover battle. New York has proved that this season. 

Biggest Question For Washington

How good is Washington's defense?

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If you look at the raw numbers, Washington's defense has been among the best in football. It's third against the run, 10th against the pass and the 64 points allowed are the fewest in the NFC East. That is a far cry from the group that allowed 478 points last year and finished 18th in yards per game. 

However, context becomes everything when trying to analyze numbers early in the season. Washington doesn't have control over its opponents, but games against Houston and Jacksonville don't exactly scream wild shootouts. 

The first time Jim Haslett's team was tested against a quality opponent, the Eagles put up 37 points and 379 total yards. In Haslett's defense, seven of those points weren't his fault because Philadelphia had a 102-yard kickoff return from Chris Polk. 

Washington is tied for the league lead with 10 sacks, though again, we have to look at context. All of those came in Week 2 against Jacksonville, which is impressive that a team could record that many sacks in one game but also shows the lack of pass rush in the other two games. 

The Giants' offensive line has been surprisingly effective this season. Connor Hughes of Big Blue Interactive tweeted out this stat about the lack of pressure Manning has faced this season:

Another impressive performance for the Giants' offensive line came in Week 3 against Houston, though this time it was against the run. According to Pro Football Focus, the entire unit finished with a rating of plus-7.2 and noted how the scheme was able to contain J.J. Watt:

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Having to contend with J.J. Watt, you’d forgive New York’s offensive line for having a down day. But outside of a few splash plays by Watt, the starting five more than held their own. Much of that was generated with careful scheming that minimized his influence, providing linemen with leverage or simply running away from him. Consistency was the name of the game on Sunday, as the Giants averaged 4.9 yards per carry without a single run over 18 yards.

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Even though consistency isn't a strength of the Giants, they do have enough playmakers on the roster to make big plays. Manning has five touchdown passes and increased his completion percentage in each game this year. Victor Cruz finally remembered how to catch the ball with a season-high 107 yards on five catches in Week 3. 

If Haslett's defense isn't able to get pressure on Manning or stop the run after watching Rashad Jennings torch the Texans for 176 yards, it's going to be another painful day in Washington. 

Cousins has proven himself capable of leading the offense to a lot of points, but at some point, you have to stop an opponent from scoring to win games. 

Prediction

So much of this game requires the Giants to play without making big mistakes. They were able to win last week despite the early miscues, so there's no evidence that things are getting better. Washington has been a different team with Cousins under center, so expect the team to climb over .500. 

Washington 27, New York 20

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