Today’s game between the Redskins and the Giants will mark the 164th overall meeting between the franchises and the teams’ 162nd regular season meeting. The series began in 1932 and the two have played twice a year during each regular season with the exception of the 1967 and 1969 seasons. The Giants lead the overall series, 94-65-4, and the regular season series, 93-64-4. The Redskins and Giants have clashed twice in the postseason at New York. Washington won 28-0 in 1943 in the division playoffs and New York won 17-0 in the 1986 NFC Championship game. Today’s game features two of the NFL’s top-five winningest active coaches. Redskins’ head coach Mike Shanahan has 178 wins (incl. playoffs) and ranks second behind Bill Belichick (216). The Giants’ Tom Coughlin is third with 169. Jeff Fisher (164) and Andy Reid (151) are the others. Shanahan is likely coaching his last game for the Redskins. Coughlin is expected to be back on the sidelines for the Giants in 2014. The Giants have no representatives in this year’s Pro Bowl. The Redskins have one: OT Trent Williams. Last season, the Giants had three players chosen (DE Jason Pierre-Paul, WR Victor Cruz and OL Chris Snee) and one alternate (QB Eli Manning). Only Manning will play in today’s game. Washington had three players chosen as well (Williams, QB Robert Griffin III and ST Lorenzo Alexander) and two alternates (LBs Ryan Kerrigan and London Fletcher). Griffin has been shut down for the season and Alexander signed with the Cardinals last March during free agency. The others will all dress today. The Redskins offense ranks second in the NFL in rushing yards per attempt (4.8) and is tied for first in the NFC and tied for second in the NFL third down conversions (90). In addition, they rank third in the NFC and fourth in the NFL in rushing yards per game (138.2) The referee for today’s contest will be Bill Vinovich. The Giants come into today’s game vs Washington with 1,210 yards rushing, which less than half of their best rushing season ever (2,518 in 2008). Andre Brown leads the Giants with 481 rushing yards and, unless he has a 179-yard day to top Ahmad Bradhaw’s 659 in 2011, his total will be the fewest to lead the Giants since Joe Montgomery had 348 yards rushing in 1999. Unless Eli Manning lights up the Redskins today, he will finish with the lowest single-season QB rating in his career. He currently sits at 69.8 for 2013. His lowest rating was 73.9 in 2007. 2004′s 55.4 does not qualify because Manning only played in nine games and attempted only 197 passes. DE Mathias Kiwanuka had two sacks last week vs Detroit and with a sack today will pass Carl Banks for eighth place on the Giants all-time sacks list. The Giants have had 73 players on their roster at one time or another this season. Of those 73, 27 were obtained through the draft, 40 were signed as free agents and five were acquired through trades. Source: Continue reading...
