SportsDirect Inc. staff
Dec 1, 2013
Giants 24, Redskins 17: Eli Manning threw for 235 yards and a touchdown as visiting New York kept alive its slim playoff hopes and handed Washington its fourth consecutive defeat.
Andre Brown ran for a pair of touchdowns and the Giants (5-7) overcome a 14-point deficit to win for the fifth time in six games and stay within two games of NFC East co-leaders Dallas and Philadelphia. New York's defense clinched the victory when Will Hill ripped the ball out of wide receiver Pierre Garcon's hands with 1:21 to play.
Robert Griffin III slowed down after a nearly flawless first half, finishing 24-of-32 for 207 yards and a touchdown and rushing for a season-high 88 yards while getting sacked five times - four by Justin Tuck. Garcon had nine catches for 61 yards but Alfred Morris was limited to 26 yards and a TD for the Redskins (3-9), who were mathematically eliminated from postseason contention.
Washington was forced to punt on four of its first five second-half possessions, getting a go-ahead 33-yard field goal by Kai Forbath following an interception by Brandon Meriweather. A botched snap on a punt put the Giants at Washington's 46-yard line and led to Andre Brown's lunging 1-yard touchdown run for a 21-17 lead with 14:26 to play before Josh Brown's 39-yard field goal made it 24-17 with 2:32 remaining.
Both quarterbacks combined for only three incompletions in 29 attempts in a first half that saw the Redskins bolt to a 14-0 lead on a 1-yard run by Morris and Griffin's 19-yard scoring pass to tight end Logan Paulsen. The Giants responded with Andre Brown's 23-yard TD run and Manning's 22-yard scoring strike to tight end Brandon Myers with 35 seconds left in the half.
GAME NOTEBOOK: Tuck tied his career high with the four sacks, which matched his total from last season and are 1.5 more than he had in the first 11 games this year. ... Redskins DE Brian Orakpo got to Manning twice and has a sack in four straight games for the first time in his career. ... Manning's third-quarter interception gave him an NFC-worst 18 and was New York's 31st turnover of the season.