The New York Giants vs Washington Redskins: Game Analysis Or Season Breakdown?

The last of the regular season games is upon us folks. 2010 has been a tumultuous journey for the New York Giants to say the least. We’ve had our ups – some glorious ups and we’ve had our downs. Boy, were there downs! But we’re not done yet Giants fans!

The Giants’ playoff hopes are alive and well, despite a multitude of missed opportunities. It is going to require a tremendous performance by the Chicago Bears to shoot us into the race for the Lombardi Trophy. Oh yeah, it is also going to take a Big Blue victory over the Washington Redskins this Sunday. We have the analysis and numbers right here. get ’em while they’re hot!

The Redskins season has been a cacophony of confusion. The Skins’ organization have paid top dollar for some of the major, and not so major, marquis players around the league over the last few years. How has that worked out for them? As of now, one is benched, another is suspended and the rest of the team can’t seem to pull it together. The Redskins are definitely victims of the “too many chiefs-not enough Indians” disorder.

The inner turmoil and power struggles within this flummoxed franchise are best visible in the win-loss column. The Skins have lost 4 of their last 5 games and are, most likely, about to lose their final game at home. While the New York Giants have had their troubles and lost some big games as of late, they are still one of the most dominant teams in the NFL.

The first meeting between these two teams was a GIANT blowout. New York recorded 200 yards for 4 TD’s, all on the ground. The aerial attack belonged to the Redskins. Donovan McNabb threw for 296 yards to 9 different receivers. The Giants defense, who sacked McNabb 4 times, shut the door for the most of the day – only giving up one TD. The final score was 31-7 Giants. The Skins have only managed to win one game since the last meeting. That was last week against the Jacksonville Jaguars. Here is a side by side comparison of the top 5 offensive and defensive leaders for both teams.

**The asterisks above indicate the leaders among the active/non injured leaders**

Here are the offensive team stats:

NY Giants Offense:

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WAS Redskins Offense:

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You’ll notice that for each team I have the first two leaders marked by tackles and the rest by sacks. My reasoning is that if I were to list al of the defensive leaders by tackles the secondary would be the primary focus. By splitting the leaders by tackles and sacks, we get a much deeper look into each team’s defense.

Here is a look at the both team’s defensive stats:

NY Giants Defense:

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WAS Redskins Defense:

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The secret is out. OK, maybe it isn’t such a secret. The Redskins defense is the worst in the league. The Giants were able to exploit their weaknesses and come out with a big win when last they met. Everything is set for them to repeat that same performance. If the G-Men want to advance to the playoffs, they have no other choice but to win this game.

They will find themselves, once again, without the talents of Hakeem Nicks and Steve Smith. Nicks is out with a broken toe. Steve Smith is out with a knee injury. Both Nick and Smith were sidelined earlier in the season with injuries. They now find themselves right back in the same position. Steve Smith’s latest injury required surgery and has a long rehabilitation process attached to it.

Even without their top two receivers, the Giants should be able to pull this game out. Of course, there is that chance of the “Mr Hyde Giants” showing up and giving birth to the calamitous twin of 2009.

The keys to this game, of course, are keeping Brandon Jacobs‘ legs moving. Give him 20+ carries and he’ll produce big numbers. Keep constant containment on Santana Moss. Shut down the running game of Ryan Torain. Lastly, and most important, the New York Giants can NOT play foolishly. We have witnessed the Giants beat themselves time and time again this season. If the Giants can get out of their own way, and get some help from our friends in ChiTown, they will have their shot at redemption. Do us proud fellas!