Giants Win On Their Day Off
Well yesterday worked out well. While the Giants were resting & healing their lead in the NFC East doubled to a full game thanks to Carolina and the Buccaneers. Losing 44-16 on the home field of the undefeated Panthers isn’t that much of a shock for the Redskins, but MAN did the Eagles lay an egg in Philly. Getting absolutely destroyed 45-17 at home by a rookie QB with a share of the division on the line is flat out laughable. 5 TDs for Crab Legs & 235 yards on the ground for Doug Martin prove there’s a lot more to worry about than the Bradford/Sanchez duo. Now they gotta travel to Detroit to face the “streaking” Lions on short rest while Washington hosts the G-Men off a bye. Coming into this season, Big Blue fans couldn’t ask for a better spot to be in.
With Pugh, Richburg, Donnell & Prince all expected back along with 2 weeks to prepare, the Giants are primed to push the Skins down even further. Plus, a W gives NY the head-to-head tiebreaker if needed. Washington also has the bad luck of having to face a healthy Romo & Dez twice down the stretch. With 4 division games left they’re certainly still alive, so a Big Blue squad that’s 6-1 in their last 7 out of a bye & hasn’t lost to the Redskins in 3 years can’t afford to reverse those trends on Sunday. A Giants win most likely means Cousins & Co. will need to win out. Good luck.
The Eagles are an absolute disaster. Sure they got the Patriots & Arizona left but I’m not even sure they beat the Lions on Thanksgiving. At this point, best-case scenario is that Week 17 at MetLife is a game for all the NFC East marbles & 8-8 gets the job done. With this division that’s certainly possible but Philly will either need to upset NE/AZ or run perfect outside of those games. Based off their last two weeks at home I don’t think Smitty or anyone else is counting on it – but how great would that Week 17 game be?
If the Cowboys plan on throwing their hat in the ring, it’ll have to start by putting the first blemish on Cam Newton’s record during turkey time. Carolina is clearly the better team but odds are heavily against an undefeated season & beating Romo in his first home game since his injury won’t be a cake walk. If Dallas pulls the upset, 8-8 is a real possibility – but I’m not worrying about Jerry Jones’ squad until I see the Panthers lose.
We all know the Giants absolutely despise making things easy – but their playoff fate is in their own hands and they don’t have to do an awful lot to keep it. Wins against the Redskins have been pretty easy to come by for Big Blue. Tacking on another should mean that, at the very least, Week 17 is a win-or-go-home game. If you told me before the season started that the Giants would host the Eagles in the final week for the division crown, I’d have signed up faster than DeSean ran that punt back 5 years ago. Then a potential Wild Card game hosting Teddy Bridgewater? Watch out NFL, it’s been 4 years…