Washington vs. Giants: Breaking Down New York's Game Plan
Don’t look now, but Sunday’s game between the New York Giants (4-9) and Washington (3-10) actually means something—at least to New York.
That’s right: A win by the Giants will not only give them their second consecutive series sweep over their division rivals, but it will also help the Giants lock up third place in the division.
Hey, a crumb’s a crumb.
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Seriously, while it’s been a disappointing year for the Giants and their fans, things could be a lot worse.
Just ask Washington, who, per John Keim of ESPN, saw cornerback Bashaud Breeland and wide receiver Andre Roberts get into a scuffle at practice Wednesday.
If that’s not bad enough, a separate ESPN report from last month alleged that quarterback Robert Griffin III “has alienated himself” from his teammates.
Wait, there’s more. Given the injury situation with quarterback Colt McCoy, who was listed as limited Wednesday on the team’s injury report, head coach Jay Gruden told the Giants media on a conference call that they won’t make a decision on whether McCoy or Griffin will start on Sunday against the Giants, noting, “We are going to practice [Wednesday] and see where Colt McCoy stands as far as his motion and his flexibility is concerned, and hopefully we will determine that by the end of the day or tomorrow.”
So, you see, Giants fans, things could be a lot worse than they are.
First, the Giants have no such discord in their locker room. Despite the losing—and not one player in that locker room is happy about how the season has gone—the players are still fighting for head coach Tom Coughlin, who wants them to forget about Sunday’s victory over the Tennessee Titans and focus.
Message received.
“There is definitely a sense of relief getting that win, but we can’t keep celebrating at this point,” quarterback Eli Manning told reporters on Wednesday.
“We’ve got to get ready for Washington, we’ve got to get back to having great practices, getting prepared and going out there and trying to get another one.”
Speaking of Manning, how nice is it to wake up in the morning, if you are a Giants fan, and know who your team’s starting quarterback is going to be on Sundays?
Heck, not even an appearance on the weekly injury report this week—Manning is listed with a back issue—is going to slow down the Giants’ “iron man,” who has started 164 consecutive regular-season games.
“I want to be there for my teammates; I want to be there for the organization,” Manning said, expressing minor annoyance that he even had to speak about being on the injury report, insisting that he was fine.
“We have a lot of guys who are banged up and hurting, they are there practicing, they are there playing on Sundays, and I want to do the same for them, always. You definitely want to be there for your teammates to show that you are committed and you are doing whatever you can to be out there on the field for them.”
Sunday’s Giants-Washington game likely won’t have the excitement of watching Johnny Manziel make his starting debut for the Cleveland Browns against the Cincinnati Bengals in the Battle of Ohio.
However, it should at least offer New York fans a glimpse into what could be a very promising future once some key offseason decisions—decisions that are coming sooner than later—are put into motion.
| Quarterback | X | |
| Running Backs | X | |
| Tight Ends | X | |
| Receivers | X | |
| Offensive Line | X | |
| Defensive Line | X | |
| Linebackers | X | |
| Defensive Secondary | X | |
| Special Teams | X |
The Game Plan
Giants on Offense
Remember how tight end Larry Donnell had three touchdowns against Washington in the first meeting?
No, that wasn’t a fluke. Washington’s defense has actually had trouble covering opposing tight ends this season, allowing four of their 11 touchdowns given up to tight ends in the last two games, according to NFL.com.
Two weeks ago, Indianapolis Colts tight end Coby Fleener had four receptions for 127 yards and two touchdowns. Last week, St. Louis Rams tight end Jared Cook also had four catches for 61 yards and two touchdowns. That’s some fine work by opposing tight ends against the Washington pass defense.
Donnell, who had seven receptions for 54 yards and the three scores in the first meeting, must be licking his chops.
That’s a good thing too. With rookie receiver Odell Beckham Jr. emerging as that guy who keeps opposing defensive coordinators up at night, the middle of the field could be there for the taking by Donnell if Beckham, as is expected, draws bracket coverage throughout the game.
Finally, let’s talk about the Giants’ rushing game, which had a banner day last week against the Titans thanks to the young legs of Andre Williams and his first career 100-yard rushing performance.
Other than Arian Foster of Houston in Week 1 and DeMarco Murray of Dallas in Week 8, no other opposing running back has topped the 100-yard rushing mark against Washington.
In addition, Washington’s run defense, ranked 11th in the NFL (105.0 yards per game), has only allowed eight rushing touchdowns to opponents this season, according to data collected from the various NFL gamebooks.
The good news for the Giants is that Rashad Jennings is off the injury report, so he should be able to see a little bigger workload than he did last week, when he carried the ball just two times for five yards.
A healthy and effective Jennings combined with the growing confidence in Williams could finally give the Giants the one-two punch on the ground that has been missing all season.
Giants on Defense
It probably doesn’t matter which quarterback—RG3 or McCoy—gets the start for Washington. (For the record, RG3 probably makes the most sense, given the Giants’ struggles against mobile quarterbacks.)
There are three things the Giants defense has to do to keep the Washington offense quiet.
The first is to stop running back Alfred Morris, who ran 12 times for 63 yards and a touchdown in the first meeting. That might be a tall order, however, for the NFL’s 30th-ranked run defense, a unit that is allowing teams an average of 134.5 yards on the ground per game and 4.9 yards per carry to opposing running backs.
Morris, by the way, has averaged 4.8 yards per carry against the Giants since entering the NFL in 2012, according to data gathered from his game logs at NFL.com.
The second thing the Giants need to do is distribute their coverage of receivers DeSean Jackson and Pierre Garcon. Jackson missed last week’s game with a lower leg contusion, an injury that kept him limited in practice on Wednesday.
According to Tom Schad of The Washington Times, Washington head coach Jay Gruden listed Jackson’s odds of playing against the Giants this weekend at “50-50,” while also stating that he won’t rush Jackson back to the field until they are convinced that the receiver can run.
If Jackson plays, the Giants could potentially devote single coverage to him in the form of Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie.
Meanwhile, as far as Garcon is concerned, the Giants held him to two receptions for 28 yards in the first meeting. Garcon has been streaky as far as his yardage has gone, and he has not caught a touchdown pass since Oct. 19 in a game against the Tennessee Titans.
The third thing the Giants need to do is continue to bring the heat against the quarterback, regardless of who starts the game.
Per Pro Football Focus (subscription required), RG3 has made some poor throws when under pressure, with all three of his interceptions coming while under duress.
Part of that, as noted by The Associated Press three weeks ago (via Foxnews.com), is that RG3's fundamentals have been sloppy and he sometimes holds onto the ball too long, thus taking a sack.
| DT Barry Cofield (illness) - DNP | LB Jameel McClain (knee) -DNP |
| DE Jason Hatcher (knee) - DNP | LB Jacquian Williams (concussion/shoulder) - DNP |
| RB Roy Helu (toe) - DNP | OL James Brewer (concussion) - DNP |
| S Brandon Meriweather (toe) - DNP | QB Eli Manning (back) - limited |
| LB Keenan Robinson (knee) | LB Mark Herzlich (concussion) - limited |
| DE Kedric Golston (back/foot) - limited | |
| WR DeSean Jackson (shin) - limited | |
| QB Colt McCoy (neck) - limited | |
| OT Morgan Moses (foot/ankle) - limited | |
| LB Will Compton (shoulder) - full | |
| DT Chris Baker (chest) - full |
Key Giants Injury: QB Eli Manning
Yes, Eli Manning is on the Giants injury report for the first time this season. However, the quarterback insisted during Wednesday’s press briefing with reporters that he is fine.
“I don’t know if I really deserve to be on an injury report,” he said. “[The team] kind of told me they had to list something. I said, ‘OK.’”
So why was Manning listed as limited in practice and not as a full participant, and what was he able to do in the team part of Wednesday’s practice?
“[I] took most of the reps. Ryan Nassib got a few reps, but that is not totally uncommon anyway,” Manning said.
“[I] looked at plays I definitely wanted—some new stuff, some things that were in the signals, possible checks, a few runs here or there, a few passes we’ve thrown a thousand times—but let Ryan Nassib get a few reps.”
How giving of Manning, right? Anyway, should there be concern that his streak of 164 consecutive regular-season starts is in jeopardy against a team that, last year, remember, delivered a crushing blow that left him with a high ankle sprain in the regular-season finale?
“I wouldn’t worry too much about it,” he said. “I’m not.”
OK, then.
Prediction
Washington might have figured out a way to beat the Dallas Cowboys—barely, at that—but without a stable situation at quarterback, with the in-fighting and the finger-pointing and all the other evils that exemplify how not to run a franchise, it’s no wonder that this club’s record is what it is.
With that said, there is no love lost between these two teams, and Washington would certainly love nothing more than to embarrass the Giants in front of their home crowd.
Can it happen? Sure.
Will it? Unlikely.
The Giants got a recent taste of what it was like to win a game, what it was like to put together four quarters of solid football in every phase of the game. Injuries aside, the Giants still have the edge in several key areas as far as personnel is concerned.
If they keep their mistakes to a minimum, there should be no reason why the Giants don’t send those fans who decide to show up to watch the game home happy.
Giants 27, Washington 17
Season Prediction Record: 8-5
Patricia Traina covers the Giants for Inside Football and The Sports Xchange . All quotes and information obtained firsthand unless otherwise sourced. Follow me on Twitter @Patricia_Traina .
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