Washington Redskins vs. New York Giants: Complete Week 15 Preview for New York
Last week, the New York Giants looked good in a 36-7 blowout win against the Tennessee Titans.
The Washington Redskins, on the other hand, looked terrible in a 24-0 shutout loss to the St. Louis Rams.
Only one win separates these two NFC East adversaries, the Giants (4-9) and the Redskins (3-10), yet a chasmic distance seems to stand between them after Week 14.
The Giants have a source of optimism in young, developing stars, such as receiver Odell Beckham Jr., running back Andre Williams and linebacker Devon Kennard—all rookies. The Redskins, conversely, are in disarray with no clear direction at quarterback or head coach.
These trends, of course, may continue or reverse this Sunday in Washington, in the third-to-last week of the 2014 season.
Read on to get the latest news, injury updates, matchups to watch and more.
Week 14 Recap
1 of 5
The Giants traveled to Nashville last week and laid a licking on the Tennessee Titans.
First Quarter
7:59—New York drains seven minutes off the clock on its first possession of the game, but the 14-play drive falls short of the end zone. Kicker Josh Brown's chip shot gives the Giants an early three-point advantage.
4:41—Odell Beckham Jr. explodes, catching a 50-yarder down the middle of the field. Then, he caps off the drive with a 15-yard touchdown catch.
1:07—The Giants score their first defensive touchdown of the season, as Markus Kuhn picks up Devon Kennard's forced fumble and sprints 26 yards for six more points.
Giants 17, Titans 0
Second Quarter
1:38—Another extended drive is stopped just shy of the goal line, setting up a 19-yard field goal. The Giants have a stranglehold on possession and are controlling every facet of the game.
0:07—The Giants get Brown in position to try one more kick before the half. He knocks a 36-yarder through the uprights, giving New York a commanding lead going into the locker room.
Giants 23, Titans 0 (Half)
Third Quarter
12:06—The running game gets a chance to flex its muscles, opening a hole for Andre Williams to sprint 50 yards down the left sideline for a touchdown. It's New York's longest running play of the year.
8:36—Eli Manning makes his lone mistake of the game, throwing a terrible pick-six to Marqueston Huff. Despite the score, Tennessee isn't exactly putting the pressure on the Giants.
0:33—Brown hits his longest kick of the game (and season)—a 52-yarder. New York is more concerned with the clock than the Titans at this point.
Giants 33, Titans 7
Fourth Quarter
11:22—Brown adds one last field goal, a 42-yarder, to go a perfect 5-of-5 on the day. The Giants run out the clock with ease and head home with their first win in more than two months.
Giants 36, Titans 7 (Final)
News and Notes
2 of 5
Jason Pierre-Paul: Will He Stay or Will He Go?
The Giants' star defensive end is good at doing 180s.
After looking like the NFL's most dominant defensive player when the Giants won the Super Bowl, Jason Pierre-Paul has limped his way to stat lines that usually denote marginal role players.
Now, JPP is doing a different turnaround. About a month ago, the impending free agent sounded indifferent about his future in New York, as reported by Bart Hubbuch of the New York Post. Now, Pierre-Paul says he wants to be a Giant for life, according to Ebenezer Samuel of the New York Daily News.
It's going to come down to money. Pierre-Paul is still one of the team's best defenders, but how much will the Giants be willing to pay him now that he has suffered significant injuries and failed to replicate his 2011 domination? That's the exact question Jordan Raanan of NJ.com is asking here.
I'll bet the Giants extend JPP an offer, but he'll find it offensively low and hit the open market for a better deal.
OBJ's "The Catch" Jersey Now in Hall of Fame
Odell Beckham Jr. made a catch three weeks ago against the Dallas Cowboys that you may have heard about.
In fact, you may still be hearing about it.
If you've stopped clicking on the dozens of "The Catch" stories that have come out since Beckham made that grab, you may have missed this one from Dan Salomone of Giants.com, who tells us the jersey OBJ was wearing when he made that catch can now be found in the Hall of Fame.
That's quite an accomplishment for a rookie wideout. The Human Highlight Reel appears to have the brightest of futures in New York, as long as he can keep his head on straight. This sort of national attention so early in Beckham's career could be damaging, especially if teams start to figure him out somewhere down the road.
Perhaps it would be wise for fans to follow the advice sports that radio mogul Mike Francesa offered and "let him accomplish something" before Beckham is crowned king of all things athletic, per Charles Curtis of NJ.com.
Or maybe Francesa is just raining on the only parade New York sports currently have.
Giants Have Some Building Blocks on Defense
Beckham may be the most celebrated rookie on the roster, but the Giants have a couple of solid youngsters on the defensive side of the ball too.
One is linebacker Devon Kennard. The 2014 fifth-round selection has been a bigger contributor in recent weeks, playing alongside veteran Jameel McClain and outshining him on most snaps. A thick, bruising hitter, Kennard plays with a physicality that Tom Coughlin loves, according to Nick Powell of NJ.com.
Showing off some added flair as a pass-rusher, Kennard was named NFC Defensive Player of the Week for his two-sack outing against the Titans, per Paul Schwartz of the New York Post. He also had two sacks the week before against Jacksonville.
Besides Kennard, the Giants also have Johnathan Hankins coming into his own in his second season at defensive tackle. The 320-pounder plugs up the middle well enough for Curt Macysyn of CBS New York to refer to him and Kennard as the building blocks of the 2015 defense.
Quote of the Week
Tom Coughlin on the Redskins special teams during his post-practice press conference on Wednesday (emphasis added):
"Their special teams, I think, are led by their outstanding punter, the left-footed Tress Way who has a 39.7 net average, but an outstanding hang time as well. Andre Roberts is currently their returner for kickoffs and punt return. DeSean Jackson could very well end up back there in the area of the punt returns.
"
Injury Report
3 of 5
Here's the Giants' injury report for Week 15, courtesy of NFL.com:
| Player | Injury | Practice | Game |
| T James Brewer | Concussion | DNP | OUT |
| LB Jameel McClain | Knee | Full | Probable |
| LB Jacquian Williams | Concussion | DNP | OUT |
| LB Mark Herzlich | Concussion | Full | Probable |
| QB Eli Manning | Back | Full | Probable |
I saved the real story of the week for this slide, since it had to do with Eli Manning's mysterious back injury. The details on what ails Manning are unknown—even to him. That's because the Giants quarterback doesn't consider himself injured at all, according to Ebenezer Samuel of the New York Daily News.
All signs point to Manning being a full go for the Redskins game this weekend, and his being listed on the injury report may be nothing more than a formality. We'll probably never know the full extent of this pseudo-injury, but at least it makes for an intriguing talking point in the days leading up to Sunday's action.
Although the rest of the list is short, it's still a headache to go through. Three players are concussed; the worst is Jacquian Williams, who has sat out each of the last four games.
With Williams, Jameel McClain and Mark Herzlich all on the injury list, look for rookie Devon Kennard to be the Giants' most impactful linebacker for the third consecutive week.
.jpg?w=256 "Colts Jaguars Football")
Matchups to Watch and X-Factor
4 of 5
Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie vs. DeSean Jackson
An infamous Giants killer will be back in MetLife Stadium this weekend, assuming DeSean Jackson is healthy enough to play. Jackson missed last week's shutout loss to the Rams due to leg bruises—ouch!—suffered the previous week against the Colts.
Although Jay Gruden is setting the odds of Jackson playing at 50-50, according to Tom Schad of The Washington Times, there's a far greater chance we see him on the field this weekend. After all, he'll be matched up against a familiar adversary in Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie. The two were teammates on the Eagles' failed "Dream Team" of 2011.
Rodgers-Cromartie is finally healthy and coming off his first full game played in quite a while. He looked spry on what would have been a pick-six against the Titans had Damontre Moore not laid a cheap hit on Zach Mettenberger during the return.
New York will need DRC at full speed if he is to keep up with even a bruised Jackson on Sunday.
Odell Beckham Jr. vs. Redskins Secondary
New York walloped Washington 42-14 earlier this season—without Odell Beckham Jr.
Try to imagine the havoc New York's offense will be capable of causing during the rematch, now that the "O" has its most dangerous receiving weapon at its disposal. Yeah...OK, now stop if all that one-handed grabbery is becoming too much to handle.
So, does Washington have a cornerback who can cover Beckham?
David Amerson? Nope.
Bashaud Breeland? Nah.
E.J. Biggers? You're joking.
What about all three at once? Maybe...
It should be another big day for OBJ.
Giants Pass-Rush vs. Whoever Plays Quarterback for Washington
We know the Giants' pass rush is on the rise (15 sacks in the last two games). We know the Redskins' pass protection is struggling (13 sacks allowed in the last two games). We know the Giants will sack the Redskins passer.
The only thing we don't know is who that passer will be.
Colt McCoy started each of the last two games, but Robert Griffin III also saw time last week. There's also Kirk Cousins, who still leads the group in every major passing category.
Washington's QB carousel has yielded just three wins in 2014.
Whoever is playing quarterback for the Redskins, the Giants will need to plant that passer in the dirt. Since Jason Pierre-Paul will be going against a premier left tackle in Trent Williams, New York may need impact performances from secondary rushers like Damontre Moore and Devon Kennard, both of whom collected two sacks against the Titans in Week 14.
X-Factor of the Week: Preston Parker
Rueben Randle was targeted only three times last week, catching just one pass for nine yards. On the other hand, Preston Parker caught five passes for 60 yards on six targets. Eli Manning might be losing some faith in New York's 2012 second-round selection, who hasn't lived up to draft-day expectations. If that's the case, look for Parker to become Manning's second-favorite target (after Beckham) down the stretch.
Predictions
5 of 5
It's time for Boilard's Bullet-Point Predictions:
- 100. Odell Beckham Jr. will eclipse 100 yards for the second straight week. He'll also score a touchdown.
- 7. The Giants will collect at least seven sacks. Damontre Moore will lead the team with at least two sacks.
- 70%. Eli Manning will complete at least 70 percent of his passes. He completed 71.8 percent of his passes against the Redskins in Week 4.
- 20+. Rashad Jennings will rip off his first carry of at least 20 yards. His backup, Andre Williams, already has three such runs this season.
- 3. Steve Weatherford will punt only three times. One of his attempts will be downed inside the 20-yard line. Another will be too long, resulting in a touchback, and the final one will be fair caught.
- Flag. Antrel Rolle will draw a controversial, 15-yard penalty for a vicious hit while breaking up a pass headed in his direction.
- Nassib Time. We will see Ryan Nassib play for more than half of the fourth quarter. He will lead the Giants offense on two drives, attempting eight passes.
Don't forget to include your own predictions, including final score, in the comment section below.
My prediction: Giants 45, Redskins 10
Kevin Boilard writes about the New York Giants at Bleacher Report.
.jpg?w=480 "Colts Jaguars Football")
.png?w=480)
