After two straight wins, N.Y. looks to make run at playoffs
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. >> Crazy as it may sound, the New York Giants are starting to believe they have a chance to make a run at the playoffs.
It’s amazing what a couple of wins can do for a team after a 1-7 start.
Saquon Barkley ran for a career-high 142 yards and scored three touchdowns as the Giants held off the Tampa Bay Buccaneers 38-35 on Sunday to win consecutive games for the first time since December 2016.
“I think there is some excitement going around,” said Eli Manning , who hit 17 of
18 passes for 231 yards and two touchdowns. “It is good. It is a good feeling to have in the locker room and you see some growth. You see the improvement.”
What the Giants (3-7) are doing is making plays and finishing. The running game has picked up and it’s opened up the passing game, and the defense is forcing turnovers. The group intercepted four passes in sending the Bucs (37) to their fourth straight loss with linebacker Alec Ogletree returning one 15 yards for a touchdown.
“I just know that we’re playing better and I just love to see these guys in here after the game with smiles on their faces,” said receiver Odell Beckham Jr., who caught an 8-yard touchdown pass. “We just put it all together, so it’s always a lot more fun when you win.”
Playing in the NFC East also helps increase the belief the Giants are not dead.
Washington, which fell to Houston and lost quarterback Alex Smith for the season to a broken leg, leads the division with a 6-4 record. No other team has a winning record.
“We’ve got a long way to go, there are a lot of things we’ve got to get better at, but if we can just keep battling and fighting, who knows?” coach Pat Shurmur said. “That would be a fun thing for everybody to write about.”
Redskins bring in quarterbacks, turn to McCoy as starter
ASHBURN, VA. >> Colt McCoy knew exactly what his teammates needed to hear.
In the aftermath of a gutwrenching two-point loss and the sickening season-ending injury to Alex Smith, McCoy stood up in the Washington Redskins locker room and addressed the group.
McCoy “told us we were in good hands,” running back Chris Thompson said. “We had no doubt about that from the jump. We lost the game, but I will say Colt talking to us afterwards really had the dudes hyped up and we’re ready to get to Dallas.”
Washington signed Mark Sanchez on Monday to serve as the new backup, but this is McCoy’s team now after Smith broke his right tibia and fibula in gruesome fashion. McCoy will start Thursday when the Redskins visit the Dallas Cowboys in a Thanksgiving showdown that will go a long way to determining who wins the NFC East, and the 32-yearold has the full confidence of the coaching staff and players to take over for the rest of the season.
“I just feel very comfortable with Colt and always have,” coach Jay Gruden said. “It’s been a luxury to have him as a backup quarterback and now it’s a great opportunity for him to take the reins. I know he’s excited about it. He’s a guy that knows the system, he’s a competitor, accurate with the football, understands where to go with the football — we assume — but we’ll see on Thursday.”