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A leg up Giants top Redskins 9-7, move atop NFC East
Updated: Monday December 04, 2000 4:04 AM
LANDOVER, Md. (AP) -- The New York Giants finally won as underdogs, returning to first place in the NFC East with a defense that turned the big-money Washington Redskins from favorites into flops. In a throwback to cold-weather, defense-dominated, pound-it-out football, the Giants held Stephen Davis to 29 yards and chased Brad Johnson out of the game in Sunday's 9-7 victory. "There were a lot of things said about us," safety Sam Garnes said. "So we were just looking forward to going out there and proving everyone wrong and showing ourselves that we can be a playoff team. We've still got a long way to go, but it's right there for us." Brad Daluiso kicked three field goals for the Giants (9-4), who have been maligned for beating the bad teams and mostly losing to the good ones. They are now 2-0 since head coach Jim Fassel guaranteed a playoff berth. "We gave the game ball to him because he took everything on his back and took the pressure off us," Garnes said. "And we played like that." Meanwhile, the Redskins (7-6) are on the verge of elimination, and head coach Norv Turner is on the brink of losing his job. The most expensive roster in NFL history lost for the fourth time in five games with another unfocused performance, especially on offense. It wasn't until Jeff George replaced Johnson with eight minutes to play that the Redskins came to life. George led a 97-yard touchdown drive and another drive to the Giants 30 in the final minute, but Eddie Murray was short on a 49-yard field-goal attempt with 50 seconds to play. "That's as poorly as we've performed offensively as long as I can remember," said Turner, who indicated that George will start next week. "We weren't able to block. We struggled to execute some pretty basic things." Asked if he thought he would be fired this week, Turner said: "You're asking the wrong guy." Owner Dan Snyder has said the Redskins must repeat as division champions for Turner to keep his job, which would require winning the last three and getting unlikely help from other teams. Both Philadelphia and the Giants hold the tiebreaker edge against the Redskins. The 44-year-old Murray, Washington's fourth kicker of the season, hit the upright from 39 yards in the second quarter and was short with the game on the line for the second consecutive week. Murray didn't have the leg from 44 yards last week on an attempt that would have sent a 23-20 loss to Philadelphia into overtime. "I gave it my best shot," Murray said. He summed up his future with the team by saying: "We'll wait and see tomorrow." Johnson, making his first start after missing three games with a knee injury, was 14-for-29 for 126 yards with two interceptions and had seven consecutive incomplete passes at one stretch, but he was harassed all afternoon. Virtually every Giants defensive starter made an impact, from the interceptions by Garnes and Emmanuel McDaniel to sacks by Mike Barrow and Cornelius Griffin. There were plenty of batted balls, near sacks and big hits. "It's like a pit bull once it tastes blood," Barrow said. "The more the game went on, the more we kept feeling it." The Giants won the game in part by winning the field position battle. Eight of their 13 drives ended in Redskins territory. The Giants took the lead at the end of the first half on two consecutive drives, both starting near midfield, that resulted in field goals of 46 and 27 yards. An exchange of interceptions in Redskins territory set up Daluiso's third field goal, a 28-yarder in the third quarter. After Johnson's second interception, by McDaniel deep in Giants territory, Turner went to George, who hit Thrash for 45 yards before Irving Fryar caught a 5-yard touchdown pass with 4:48 to play. The Giants punted on their next possession, and the Redskins started their final drive on their own 14 with 2:39 to play. George completed four passes to get the ball downfield Thrash then caught a pass at Giants 19, but a replay review showed he trapped the ball, and the pass was ruled incomplete. Three plays later, Murray's attempt fell short. "We drove in here and saw the atmosphere, and I knew my team was ready to go play," Fassel said. Notes: The Giants broke a four-game losing streak to the Redskins and won for the first time at their 3-year-old stadium. ... The Redskins' six losses have been by a total of 23 points. It was the second loss of the season in which the Redskins didn't allow a touchdown. ... The Giants are 6-1 against the NFC East and have won 28 in a row when leading after three quarters.
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