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DESkins wrote:For those of us who like to see what the other folks say about the game:

REDSKINS 17, EAGLES 10 (Final)


Eagles can't run from loss to Skins

By Aaron Knox

Philly.com Staff


The Eagles had some success throwing the ball without Terrell Owens, but their inability to establish a running game proved costly in a 17-10 loss to the Washington Redskins at FedEx Field.

Washington running back Clnton Portis helped the Redskins take advantage of a clutch punt return as the Redskinds rallied for a 17-10 victory that dropped the Eagles to 4-4 on the season.

The Eagles tried to drive for the tying score, but quarterback Donovan McNabb threw an interception to Redskins safety Ryan Clark at the Redskins 3-yard line with 1:30 to play.

The Eagles had moved from their own 15 with 2:41 remaining into the red zone, but McNabb's pass intended for Greg Lewis was picked off by Clark to seal the victory for Washington (5-3). Clark returned the ball to the Washington 9-yard line, and the Redskins ran out the clock from there.

The Eagles tried to establish a running game against the Redskins, who entered the game as the NFL's top team against the run.

The results?

A total of 45 rushing yards on 23 carries. Brian Westbrook, signed earlier in the day to a five-year contract extension for a reported $25 million and a $9 million signing bonus, managed 24 yards on 17 carries, a season high.

For carries, not yards. And the Eagles are in last place in the NFC East. not their accustomed first.

The Eagles did a little better on the passing side of the ball before McNabb's interception. It was his eighth of the season, matching his total for all of last year.

Rookie receiver Reggie Brown, starting in place of the suspended -- or inactive (the Eagles weren't saying) -- Terrell Owens, had five catches for 94 yards and a 56-yard touchdown pass. McNabb was 22-of-35 yards for 304 yards and the TD. It wasn't enough.

Just moments after the Eagles had tied the score at 10-10 on a 34-yard field goal by David Akers in the third quarter, the Redskins answered with a 7-play, 48-yard drive that Portis ended with a 6-yard touchdown run with 2:51 left in the third quarter.

The drive was set up by a 40-yard punt return by Ledell Betts, who brought the ball to the Eagles 48-yard line.

Billy McMullen's 38-yard grab helped the Eagles knot the score at 10-10 on Akers' field goal, which concluded an 11-play, 64-yard drive with 6:31 left in the third quarter.

Little-used running back Mike Sellars bulled over from a yard out to give the host Redskins a 10-7 lead entering the third quarter.

Sellars, on his first carry of the season, lost the ball as he crossed the goal line, but after a challenge officials ruled he had control of the ball when he scored with 4:17 left in the first half. Sellars also has caught six passes this year, with four receiving touchdowns.

The Redskins moved 79 yards in just five plays, with a 39-yard pass interference penalty against Eagles cornerback Lito Sheppard giving Washington a first-and-goal at the Eagles 1. Sellars scored on the next play.

His run gave the Redskins 10 straight points after the Eagles struck first.

Rookie wide receiver Reggie Brown, starting in place of Terrell Owens, caught a 56-yard touchdown pass from Donovan McNabb as the Eagles took a 7-0 lead in the first quarter.

Washington kicker John Hall kicked a 24-yard field goal with 12:37 to play in the second quarter to bring the Redskins within 7-3. Hall's short kick came after the Redskins drove 59 yards in 10 plays after the Eagles drew first blood.

Brown's touchdown was the first in the first quarter for the Eagles in six games. It was just the 10th catch of the season for the first-year receiver, thrust into the starting lineup when the Eagles decided Saturday to leave the controversial Owens at home for tonight's NFC East contest.

After reporting that Owens had been suspended on Saturday for "conduct detrimental to the team," there were conflicting reports on CBS on Sunday that Owens had later been declared inactive for tonight's game, rather than suspended, because the Eagles had missed a deadline for reporting the suspension in time for his pay to be withheld for tonight's game.

Brown's scoring catch, which saw him catch a strike from McNabb in stride and race untouched to the end zone, came on the Eagles' third posession of the game and capped a five-play, 70-yard drive with 2:55 left in the first quarter.

The Eagles, throwing more than 72 percent of the time before tonight's contest, ran the ball six times and threw it seven in the first quarter, and opened the game with two straight runs by Brian Westbrook, who earlier in the day signed a five-year, $25 million contract extension.

Westbrook gained just 9 yards on five first-quarter carries, but also caught two passes for 10 yards.

Paul Domowitch wrote:LANDOVER, Md. - It's hard to say how much the Eagles missed Terrell Owens last night.

Maybe he would've made a difference in the Eagles' 17-10 loss to the Redskins and maybe he wouldn't have. Maybe he would've been able to get open on that pivotal fourth-and-4 play from the Washington 7-yard line with a minute-and-a-half left in the game and maybe he wouldn't have.

Maybe he would've helped the

Eagles collect more than 17 first downs. Maybe he would've helped them convert more than four of 13 third-down opportunities. And maybe he would've helped them gain more than 336 yards.

Complicating matters for the Eagles' offense last night was the fact that they not only were they without Owens, but also were missing their valuable tight end, L.J. Smith, who left the game midway through the second quarter with a concussion and never returned.

Without Owens and without Smith, quarterback Donovan

McNabb still managed to complete 22 of 35 passes for 304 yards. The Eagles' three wideouts, rookie Reggie Brown, Greg Lewis and Billy

McMullen combined for 13 catches for 211 yards. Brown even had an Owens-like touchdown in the first quarter when he hauled in a pass from McNabb on a crossing route and took it 56 yards for the Eagles' only touchdown.

"It's not good that he's not here,'' said Lewis, who a year ago was the club's No. 4 wideout and now finds himself as the No. 1 guy. "I wish he was here because he's close to me and he's a great player. But he's not here right now, so we have to go with what we've got. We went out there tonight and gave it our all. We just fell short.''

But the absence of Owens and Smith allowed the Redskins to

focus on running back Brian Westbrook, who was held to 79 rushing and receiving yards and just 3.8 yards per touch.

With no Owens to worry about, the 'Skins were able to move a safety up in the box against the run. Westbrook ran the ball a season-high 17 times, but managed just 24 yards. They also were able to neutralize him in the passing game. Westbrook had just four receptions for 55 yards.

And with the exception of Brown's early touchdown catch-and-run, they were able to shut down Brown, Lewis and McMullen when they had to. The Eagles' 12 passing first downs were their third fewest of the season.

"T.O.'s a big part of the offense and an explosive player,'' said McMullen, whose three receptions last night were one more than he had in the

Eagles' first seven games. "It does matter if he's out there, but we're just going to keep on playing. T.O. is a big part of the offense and we'd love to have him back.''

Costliest penalty

The 39-yard pass-interference penalty on Lito Sheppard that set up the Redskins' go-ahead touchdown in the second quarter. He had good coverage on Redskins wide receiver David Patten, but lost his balance when the ball was in the air and grabbed on to Patten as he fell. That gave the 'Skins a first down at the 1-yard line. Fullback Mike Sellers scored on the next play to put Washington up 10-7.

Worst decision

Donovan McNabb's fake spike at the end of the first half. He thought he could catch the Redskins defense offguard, but none of his receivers realized what he was doing. McNabb was sacked by Phillip Daniels, time ran out and the Eagles blew a chance for a field goal.

Costliest injury

L.J. Smith's second-quarter concussion. The Eagles tight end left the game with about 8 minutes left in the half and never returned.


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Send e-mail to pdomo@aol.com

The Eagles tried to establish a running game against the Redskins, who entered the game as the NFL's top team against the run

JPFair wrote:

The Eagles tried to establish a running game against the Redskins, who entered the game as the NFL's top team against the run

Slightly off topic, but is this accurate even after Tiki Barbers 200 plus yards against us? It seems like we're still an outstanding run prevention team, but we've given up a few big plays this year that I thought would have bounced us out of the top five against the run.

JPFair wrote:Thanks for clarifying that Jake. Now, answser me a question. Do you work for the Elias Sports Bureau?

DESkins wrote:"We've got to go back to work on Monday and try to prepare better," Bledsoe said.

"The only other option is to quit – and there's no quit in this team."

It just looked that way at times.

E-mail jjtaylor@dallasnews.com

Humiliating defeat could linger for years
JIM REEVES
In My Opinion

LANDOVER, Md. - This could be the game that changes Cowboys history. Certainly, it has changed it for this season, at the very least.

But the fallout from Sunday's stunning and humiliating 35-7 loss to the Redskins at FedEx Field might be felt for years to come.

In what was clearly a pivotal game in the Cowboys' drive for the playoffs, they were outplayed and outcoached in every phase of the game; whipped so badly and so convincingly, at this moment it is difficult to even conceive of this team sniffing the postseason.

Considering what was at stake, it has to be the most devastating Cowboys' defeat of the Parcells' era. After he spent last week telling us how much he liked these players, they flat quit on him Sunday.

They soiled their britches.

It is fair to wonder whether such a dismal failure in[b] such a huge game will eventually influence Parcells' decision to keep coaching beyond this season.

"You can only lose a game once," said Parcells, looking on the bright side. "We were just awful.

"We lost this one badly. Now we have to see what we can do."

Plan their January vacations is my guess.

The Cowboys now must win their final two games of the season -- at Carolina and at home against St. Louis -- to have a prayer at a wild-card spot and even that might not be enough, considering the Redskins now own the tiebreaker between them.

After what we saw Sunday, that might be little more than a pipe dream. A Michael Irvin under-the-car-seat pipe dream.

"Nobody's giving up," tight end Dan Campbell vowed in a grim and shocked Cowboys' locker room. "We're not going to roll over.

"But the way we played [Sunday], we don't even deserve to be in the playoffs."

The rolling over already happened. The question is why.
How could a team with so much on the line mount such an inexcusably pitiful effort?

"There's really no way to explain it," Keyshawn Johnson said. "I just know we got the crap beat out of us."

The offensive line should have swapped uniforms with the Redskins cheerleaders. When Torrin Tucker and company weren't being flagged for false starts and holding, they were waving pompoms at the Redskins' defenders as they rushed by.

"It seemed like they were bringing a lot of guys, you know?" tackle Rob Petitti said.

This is a line that is begging to be blown up again this next off-season. Owner/general manager Jerry Jones will have little choice but to oblige, especially if creaking Drew Bledsoe returns at quarterback.

Guard Marco Rivera was taken off on a cart with a strained neck late in the game, but he's not expected to be so immobile that he can't false start again next weekend.

"When we have penalty problems, it's always the same people," said Parcells, dismissing the 90,000-plus FedEx Field crowd as an alibi. "We didn't block them. We got overwhelmed."

Bledsoe, who was supposed to be one of the edges the Cowboys had in this game, was sacked seven times, five of them coming on the first 10 offensive plays of the second half, when Dallas was trying futilely to rally from a 28-0 deficit. He also threw three interceptions and lost a fumble.
Bledsoe looked old, virtually immobile and panicky in the face of the Redskins' constant pressure.

"We never thought we'd see this happen to our team," Bledsoe said. "I didn't think that this team was capable of losing a game like that."

Until he broke off a 51-yard run, his longest of the season, late in the third quarter when the Cowboys trailed 35-0, running back Julius Jones had done nothing, unless you count passes dropped and runs stuffed. He averaged 2.5 yards on his other 11 carries. Marion Barber had a meaningless 30 yards on 10 carries.

Terry Glenn, the one receiver the Cowboys have who can stretch the field, disappeared against a banged-up and depleted Washington secondary. Until the final minute of the game, he had one catch for 8 yards.

Yet, as bad as the Cowboys' offense played, you could make the argument that the defense was even worse.

It didn't come close to stopping the run.

Clinton Portis had 112 yards on 23 carries, leading a ground game that piled up 171 yards.

It couldn't begin to defend the pass.

Quarterback Mark Brunell, suffering through a wretched second half of the season until Sunday, matched his career high with four touchdown passes -- in the first half. He hadn't thrown that many TD passes since 1998.
But why wouldn't Brunell have had a good day? The Cowboys' rush didn't get to him a single time all afternoon. Number of times Brunell was hit: zero.

If there was a game-turning play, it probably came early in the second quarter with the Redskins leading by only 7-0. The 'Skins had just crossed midfield when Santana Moss broke away from cornerback Aaron Glenn inside the 5 to make a skidding, 42-yard catch at the Cowboys' 1.

If aging Joe Gibbs hadn't been dozing and had challenged the referee's spot, a review would likely have showed that Moss actually scored on the play, but it didn't matter. Three plays later, Brunell hit H-back Chris ey with a 2-yard touchdown pass, the second of three he caught in the first half.

"That big play that Santana made really turned the tide," safety Keith Davis said. "We haven't been beaten like this all year. Every game we've lost, we've been in right until the end.

"It puzzles me, also. I don't understand it. It's unacceptable."

Very possibly even history-changing, embarrassingly unacceptable.

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Jim Reeves, (817) 390-7760 revo@star-telegram.com
email thisprint thisreprint or license this

If aging Joe Gibbs hadn't been dozing and had challenged the referee's spot, a review would likely have showed that Moss actually scored on the play, but it didn't matter.

Giants, Playing as if There Is a Tomorrow, Do Not Clinch
By JOHN BRANCH

LANDOVER, Md., Dec. 24 - In a little room in the depths of FedEx Field, Giants Coach Tom Coughlin stood on a podium above the news media, calmly discussing a performance that none of the Giants could fully explain.

In midsentence, the sound of a peppy marching band, passing down the hallway, filled the room. Once again, for the Giants, the message was drowned out.

Before the Giants lost to the Washington Redskins, 35-20, they said all the right things. They knew a victory would clinch the National Football Conference East division. They knew it would earn them at least one home playoff game. But perhaps the back-of-the-mind reality - that a loss would not end the season, just add suspense to it - was inescapable. No matter how many times they told themselves it was a must-win game, the Giants knew it was no such thing.

But the next one is.

"They played with a different level of intensity, and we didn't match that," Giants running back Tiki Barber said of the Redskins, who needed the victory to keep their playoff hopes alive. "This game was for the season to them, and they came to play."

That message - playing a game to determine the season - was supposed to be the mind trick the Giants played on themselves. Instead, the defeat left the Giants (10-5) with nothing earned but anxiety and more spoken resolve.

"It's hard to get in the position we were in, a chance to clinch the division, the winning record that we had and everything we've accomplished," center Shaun O'Hara said. "And to come down here and not take advantage of that, it's inexcusable."

The Giants may still emerge from the weekend with a wild-card playoff berth assured, if Minnesota loses at Baltimore on Sunday. But to win the division - and perhaps make the playoffs at all - the Giants have to beat the Raiders in Oakland next Saturday, or hope the Redskins (9-6) lose on the road to the Philadelphia Eagles next Sunday. The Redskins own the tie-breaker with the Giants because they have a better divisional record.

"I hope we carry this over to next week and we take it out on Oakland," O'Hara said. "That's what I'm hoping for. I hope guys look around and say we've got too good of a team to let something like this - I mean, there's got to be a time where we mature as a team, and win games that we're supposed to win. We haven't done that this year."

The Giants were undone by some of what haunted their four previous losses - a soft pass defense, a missed field goal, penalties and spoiled scoring chances.

On the first play from scrimmage, quarterback Eli Manning threw deep to the open Plaxico Burress. The ball spun Burress around and bounced off his hands as he fell in the end zone. "It was just kind of the way the day went," Manning said.

Midway through the fourth quarter, with the Giants trying for their latest comeback, Manning completed an apparent 36-yard touchdown pass to Amani Toomer. But guard Chris Snee was called for holding, and the Giants soon turned the ball over on downs.

In between those microcosmic events, the teams traded entertaining scoring plays, including an interception return, a halfback pass and a pass tipped by one receiver to another.

The Giants trailed, 21-17, at halftime and held some semblance of momentum, courtesy of a 25-yard touchdown pass from Manning to Toomer with 10 seconds left in the second quarter. The ball had ricocheted off the outstretched hands of Burress.

The Giants held the Redskins to three plays and a punt to open the third quarter, then drove the ball efficiently. But they stalled at the 12, and Washington defensive lineman Renaldo Wynn blocked Jay Feely's 29-yard field-goal attempt.

Quarterback Patrick Ramsey replaced Mark Brunell, who injured his knee, on the next drive and hit Santana Moss on a deep slant that became a 72-yard touchdown pass. It was one of three touchdowns for Moss.

Feely's 38-yard field goal cut the Redskins' lead to 28-20 entering the fourth quarter. But when the Giants needed a defensive stand most, Washington running back Clinton Portis punctuated a 10-play drive with a 19-yard touchdown run.

Portis finished with 108 yards on 27 attempts. Barber had 80 yards on 16 carries, the fewest rushes he has had since early October. Barber had gained a franchise-record 220 yards against Kansas City a week earlier and 206 yards against the Redskins on Oct. 30.

"We got away from doing what we do best," Barber said. "We didn't run the ball consistently enough."

Manning was 23 of 41 for 244 yards and threw one interception. In the second quarter, he threw behind tight end Jeremy Shockey, who was popped in the chin by Redskins linebacker Lemar Marshall while running his route. As Shockey turned to an official, the ball whizzed behind him and into the arms of Marshall.

Two plays later, Portis took a pitch from Brunell, sold the play as a run and lobbed a pass to tight end Chris ey for a 17-yard score and a 21-10 lead.

Shockey left the game with an ankle injury on the Giants' next drive, and sat out most of the second half.

The Giants' only lead came when the rookie linebacker Chase Blackburn intercepted a Brunell pass and returned it 31 yards for a touchdown in the first quarter.

Blackburn's day took a frightening turn in the third quarter. After making a tackle, he lay immobile on the grass while medical personnel rushed to his side. They strapped him to a board and drove him off the field on a cart as Blackburn gave a thumb's-up sign. Giants officials called the injury a neck sprain, and Blackburn was expected to stay the night in a Washington-area hospital.

Coughlin's initial postgame remarks were about Blackburn, not the game or the playoff chase. But then he addressed the issue of his team's spoiled chance.

"As I said to the players, after talking about the way in which we played and not really making the plays that we counted on making, you know, thank God we've got one more opportunity," Coughlin said.

The band had moved on. The message was clear.

EXTRA POINTS

The Giants and Pro Bowl defensive end Osi Umenyiora agreed to a six-year contract extension, General Manager Ernie Accorsi said. Umenyiora's original contract was through 2006. The new deal is worth $33 million, plus incentives, with $15 million guaranteed.

A Pass Defense in Name Only Versus the Redskins
By JUDY BATTISTA

LANDOVER, Md., Dec. 24 -To Giants defensive end Michael Strahan, it didn't even seem as if the Washington Redskins passed very often on Saturday. And they didn't. Mark Brunell and Patrick Ramsey, who replaced Brunell in the third quarter after Brunell strained his right knee, attempted just 18 passes between them.

But oh, what they did with those. The Giants, so physically dominating when they beat the Redskins, 36-0, in October, watched passes sail past them and receiver Santana Moss slip away all afternoon, and their easiest chance to clinch the National Football Conference East title was lost. The Redskins had 233 yards passing on 13 completions, but four touchdowns were scored on passes.

Moss, the former Jets receiver who has had a breakout season with the Redskins, scored three touchdowns in the Redskins' 35-20 victory, and he exposed, with harsh transparency, the holes in the Giants' pass defense.

Cornerback Will Allen was the most frequent victim of Moss. He was left alone to cover Moss on his 59-yard touchdown reception on a post pattern when Allen's safety help followed the tight end on a crossing pattern.

"I was just trying to catch back up," Allen said afterward.

And when Ramsey launched a pass for Moss in the third quarter, Allen leaped so high that he jumped over Moss, and tried to bring him down by the neck. Moss got away for a 72-yard touchdown.

Considering the Giants now have to beat the Raiders - and Randy Moss, who will be a target of the former Giants quarterback Kerry Collins - to win the division, Saturday's game was an inopportune time for the secondary to come up short.

"I'm a cornerback - cornerbacks have short memories," Allen said. "If I didn't, I wouldn't be able to play. He had two big plays. It's gone already. I ain't got no choice. A lot of responsibility comes on that island."

The Giants showed a disturbing lack of pass-defense aggression. The Redskins left extra people back to protect Brunell and Ramsey from the pass rush, and the Giants, who had 37 sacks entering the game, had just one sack and little pressure otherwise.

Allen said the defense had not established itself as the physical force it prides itself in being. Strahan was disgusted by the big plays the Giants ceded, which, in addition to Moss's touchdowns, included a 17-yard reception by Chris ey on a halfback pass from Clinton Portis. The entire secondary went up to stop Portis from running, so he lofted the ball over their heads and ey scored untouched.

When the Giants beat the Redskins, they allowed just 125 yards of total offense, and just seven first downs. Saturday, the Redskins had 22 first downs, and were 9 of 14 on third downs.

"Coming out here and taking teams lightly will get us beaten," Strahan said. "They threw the ball up and had some fun with it. It's not as if they were just lining up and saying 'Come and get him.' We all know if they did that, they wouldn't have had success throwing the ball. We gave up easy plays defensively. To make things easy is frustrating."

But perhaps it was Moss's first touchdown - a 17-yard wide-receiver screen that has become his trademark play this season - that was the most troubling. The Redskins were able to set up a wall of protection. It was a play the Giants knew the Redskins run well if they block, and a play, Allen said later, that "the only way to stop it is to hustle to the ball."

The question, then, is whether the Giants, mindful that their playoff hopes would not die even with the loss, failed to hustle as Moss scampered toward the end zone. Perhaps Coach Tom Coughlin answered that question, even unintentionally, and raised others for the week ahead, when he said: "There was no one in his path to tackle him."

And now the path is a little bumpier for the Giants.

Against Giants, Moss Was Rolling
By CLIFTON BROWN

LANDOVER, Md., Dec. 24 - Wide receiver Santana Moss was the most dominant player on the field Saturday, no matter who played quarterback for the Washington Redskins.

With touchdown catches of 17, 59 and 72 yards, Moss led Washington to its fourth consecutive victory, 35-20 over the Giants.

The Redskins will make the playoffs for the first time since the 1999 season if they win next Sunday at Philadelphia. They will also capture the National Football Conference East if they defeat the Eagles and the Giants lose Saturday at Oakland.

Moss's first two touchdowns came from throws by Mark Brunell. His third, a 72-yard play, was courtesy of a pass by Patrick Ramsey; he replaced Brunell, who left the game with a sprained knee early in the third quarter.

Moss showed all 90,477 fans at FedEx Field why he made the Pro Bowl this season. When the ball is thrown in his direction, he usually catches it. And defensive backs who cover him, like the Giants' Will Allen, often find themselves in trouble.

"His long-ball reaction is just phenomenal," Washington Coach Joe Gibbs said after the victory, which improved his career coaching record in December and January to 56-18.

The off-season trade of Randy Moss to the Oakland Raiders from the Minnesota Vikings drew far more attention than the deal that sent Santana Moss to Washington from the Jets. But Santana Moss has made the bigger impact, with 80 catches for 1,400 yards and 9 touchdowns. (Randy Moss has caught 53 passes for 889 yards and 6 touchdowns.)

The Giants were aware of Santana Moss's ability, but Allen had a terrible game and seemed to be particularly vulnerable in single-coverage situations. With Clinton Portis running well - he rushed for 108 yards on 27 carries for the Redskins - the Giants often moved a safety closer to the line of scrimmage to help stop the run. That left Allen alone against Moss, who is one of the league's fastest players.

"When they give us that single coverage, we're calling the plays at the right time," Moss said. "With Clinton running the way he's running, they got to respect that run. That last one that I scored on, I watched the safety roll from my hash to the middle of the field. I was like, Oh, man, it's stealing from a baby. When I seen it happen, my eyes got big."

Perhaps Allen's eyes also widened when he saw Moss streaking past him. Moss sounded almost sorry for Allen after the game.

"Being a corner is a hard position," he said. "I used to play it when I was young. When that ball gets up in the air, it's almost a disadvantage if the receiver knows where it is and you've got your back turned."

On the first touchdown catch, which gave Washington a 7-0 lead, Moss caught a quick pass near the sideline on a play that was designed to pick up 5 to 10 yards. But Moss made Allen miss the tackle and used his speed to race 17 yards into the end zone.

Moss's 59-yard touchdown late in the first quarter put Washington ahead for good, 14-10. After using a stop-and-go fake against Allen, Moss was open by 3 yards. Brunell's pass was underthrown, but Allen had his back turned. Moss adjusted to the ball and outraced Allen to the end zone.

His final touchdown grab was his best. Ramsey spotted the Giants in single coverage on Moss. The pass forced Moss to change direction and contort his body before making the catch. Allen made a feeble attempt to tackle him and Moss lowered his shoulder slightly; Allen tumbled to the ground as if he had collided with a vending machine. Moss then had a clear path to the end zone.

"The only way I was going to go to Santana is if they played what they did," Ramsey said. "He made a great play. It was a little bit of a high throw, and he made an unbelievable move."

Moss and Portis were college teammates at Miami, and Portis joked about Moss's ability to adjust to the ball in the air.

"He used to play Frisbee with the dog in college," Portis said. "He wouldn't wait for the dog to jump up and grab it. He'd grab it."

Brunell walked off the field with a slight limp after the game, and the Redskins said they would wait to see how his knee reacted this week before announcing a starter for the Philadelphia game. No matter who plays quarterback, he will have Moss, one of the best deep threats in football, on his side.

"We always try to get him in the game plan," Gibbs said. "The defense is kind of aware of that, too. It's got to almost come up on a certain play call. You can't double somebody all the time."

And when the Giants did not double-team Moss, he made them pay.

A nighmare before Xmas
BY DARREN EVERSON
DAILY NEWS SPORTS WRITER
Sunday, December 25th, 2005

LANDOVER, Md. - So much for clinching in time for Christmas. In fact, given how flat the Giants looked yesterday, they'll be fortunate to win the division anytime at all.

They still lead the NFC East, and they can still win it at Oakland on Saturday. But what about this team's road performance makes you certain it will?

The Giants had a chance to end it yesterday, and they didn't do it. Didn't come close, actually. They fell to the Redskins, 35-20, at FedEx Field.

From the first snap - a would-be touchdown bomb dropped by Plaxico Burress - one team never made the big play when it needed to. The other team was surging; Washington got three touchdowns from ex-Jet Santana Moss and remained alive in the division race with its fourth straight victory.

"I just can't understand that," Amani Toomer said. "We're playing for a championship. I can't understand that."

Several Giants admitted they didn't match the Redskins' intensity. From Tiki Barber to Tom Coughlin, they were at a loss to explain why.

Here's a guess: They didn't need to. The Giants (10-5) came in knowing they had two shots to win the division. They can even clinch a playoff berth tonight if Minnesota loses or ties at Baltimore.

But now the division is in danger. If the Raiders beat the Giants Saturday - and wouldn't Kerry Collins just love to do that? - the Redskins (9-6) would win the East with a victory in Philadelphia. The significance of winning the division is the initial home playoff game it guarantees. The Giants, obviously, need to be home as much as possible.

"Our playoffs in essence start next weekend," Barber said. "We need (that) win. Whether or not we sneak in today, we need this win because we need to get our confidence back."

For whatever reason, as Barber said, the Giants just aren't the same team away from the Meadowlands. They're 8-1 there, including a 36-0 rout of the Redskins in Week 8.

But this game bore no resemblance to the teams' first meeting. Barber ran for 80 yards - on just 16 carries, which mildly surprised him - after getting 206 in the previous meeting.

But the first sign of trouble was the first play from scrimmage. After Chad Morton ran the opening kick back to the 50, Burress beat safety Ryan Clark on a deep pattern. Eli Manning hit him in stride at the goal line, but the first-year Giant - whose production has tailed off this month - turned the wrong way initially as the ball was in flight. It glanced off his fingertips.

"I make those plays every day in practice," Burress said. "I just didn't make it."

"That's the sense of urgency I'm talking about," Barber said. "In a game of this magnitude, we have to come up with that. We have to do whatever it takes to make that catch and get on the board. We didn't, and they got on the board first."

Moss scored on the Redskins' first possession, on a 17-yard screen pass. He darted around Will Allen, who had a seriously long day.

Everyone in the league knows Moss is the Redskins' sole receiving weapon - evidenced by his huge first half this season, then his lack of even an 80-yard game since October. Somehow, that detail managed to escape the Giants yesterday.

Allen repeatedly was the only defender in Moss' vicinity, and the Redskins took advantage: Moss (160 yards) scored on 59- and 72-yard pass plays to go with his 17-yard score, and the Redskins roared to a 28-17 third quarter lead - despite the fact that Patrick Ramsey replaced Mark Brunell (sprained knee) at quarterback midway through the third.

All of the persistent Giant problems were cropping up. Penalties (nine). A blocked field goal, which could've made it 21-20. All that allowed the Redskins to play with the lead, and the Giant defense was getting worn down. Clinton Portis (108 yards) darted around left end for a 19-yard touchdown run early in the fourth quarter, making it 35-20.

Even then, the Giants weren't finished. Toomer - who'd earlier caught a touchdown on a ball that deflected off Burress - thought he'd trimmed the lead with a 36-yard TD catch with 6:19 left.

Hold everything, though. Holding, Chris Snee.

"I was real shocked to see that flag laying on the ground," said Coughlin, who happens to be Snee's father-in-law. "I look forward to looking at that play."

The Giants can't be looking forward to the week ahead, though. They have to make their fourth trip to the West Coast, and they still may have to do what they did not yesterday.

"It's not over," Michael Strahan said. "We're disappointed, everybody is mad, but it's not over."

Still waiting

By losing yesterday, Giants leave playoff fate up in the air. While it would take a lot for Big Blue to miss the postseason, their playoff picture is a lot murkier than it could be:

Giants win NFC East if...
# They win at Oakland OR
# Washington loses at Philadelphia

Giants are in as a wild card if...
# Minnesota loses tonight at Baltimore OR
# Minnesota loses next week vs. Chicago OR
# Carolina loses at Atlanta OR
# Carolina wins at Atlanta, Tampa Bay loses vs. New Orleans, Minnesota wins twice, Giants lose at Oakland and Giants clinch "strength of victory" tiebreaker over Tampa Bay.

Moss & Skins make it a long afternoon for Allen
BY IAN BEGLEY
DAILY NEWS SPORTS WRITER
Sunday, December 25th, 2005

LANDOVER, Md. - Will Allen had a simple explanation for the Giants' meltdown at FedEx Field yesterday. The way he saw it, their inability to execute in the game's crucial moments crippled any shot they had to win the game - and to wrap up the NFC East title.

"(The Redskins) were able to come out and make some plays," Allen said. "You win games when you make enough plays. When you don't, you lose them."

He was speaking, of course, of the Giants as a whole, but his play provided a perfect example to back up the statement.

Many of the Redskins' "big plays" came directly at Allen's expense, including Santana Moss' three touchdown catches and Clinton Portis' fourth-quarter score.

Moss found a way to beat Allen down the field throughout the game, and even when Allen stayed with him, Moss was able to break free from Allen's grasp.

Moss made an adjustment on his route to grab a 72-yard touchdown pass - his third of the game - which opened up the Redskins' lead to 28-17. The Giants never drew closer than eight the rest of the game.

"I gave my guy the comeback nod and (Patrick Ramsey) threw it up there," said Moss, who also had touchdown catches of 17 and 59 yards. "I made a catch and it went the distance."

Allen was in position to make a tackle, but came up empty as Moss slipped by for the score.

"If there is anybody that has a better long-ball reaction than that guy," Redskins coach Joe Gibbs said, pausing to shake his head. "He turned around and snatched that ball from I don't know where."

Allen also was effusive when talking about Moss, whom he had limited to just six catches and 36 yards in the Giants' 36-0 win on Oct. 30.

"You have to give credit where credit is due," Allen said while acknowledging that Moss was the toughest receiver he's had to cover all season.

"He's a good receiver. There's a reason why he has the second-most yards in the league."

Besides his inability to contain Moss - who entered the game with one touchdown in the last eight games - Allen also was fooled badly on Clinton Portis' 19-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter.

Portis, who ran for 108 yards on 27 carries, said that he noticed the Giants' defense overpursuing him in the first half, and decided to use Big Blue's aggresiveness to his advantage.

He took a handoff from Ramsey - who had replaced the injured Brunell in the third quarter - started to his right and made a sharp cut back to the left that caught all 11 Giants defenders off guard. Allen was the only Giant who had a chance to take down Portis, but he whiffed on the tackle and Portis had a clear path to the end zone.

thaiphoon wrote:Anyone have the loser papers from NY for this week ?

:hmm: Have you tried reading above your post lately???