MNF: Redskins vs. Giants Game Analysis

Brad Penner-US PRESSWIRE

Monday Night Football’s matchup draws plenty of intrigue as Robert Griffin III and the upstart Washington Redskins take on the defending Super Bowl champion New York Giants in a pivotal NFC-East matchup due to have playoff implications.

In their last meeting, the Giants led a 27-23 comeback victory over the Redskins on Oct. 21. Though, New York had a tough time containing Griffin, allowing him to throw for 258 yards on 20 of 28 passes and two touchdowns.  He also rattled off 89 yards on the ground.

And unfortunately for Giants fans, Griffin’s gotten better.  In the Redskin’s last two wins, which came against the Dallas Cowboys and Philadelphia Eagles, the 22-year-old star quarterback threw for four touchdown passes in each contest while rallying his team to 69 combined points.

“He is one of the best dual threats in our game today and we’re going to have our hands full trying to stop that guy,” Giants defensive end Justin Tuck said, per ESPN.com.

And the Giants are, unfortunately, susceptible to the run.  New York has yielded a combined 248 yards on the ground in October — its highest total in the last three years. Something tells me that the Redskins, who rank second in the NFL in rushing yards (162.9 yards per game), are going to take advantage of the Giants’ defensive line troubles.

“The things they faced facing us the last time with the running game are still there but we’ve added elements in the passing game that make us more dangerous,” Griffin said. “So they’ll prepare for that and we’ll see what happens.”

Meanwhile, the Giants have overcame a two-game losing streak after defeating the Green Bay Packers last Sunday night in a decisive 38-10 victory.  The game proved that the Giants are out of their mid-season and in perfect form to put plenty of points on the board, something that will come easy against the Redskins.  In fact, Washington is second-worst in the league in passing yards allowed (301.4 yards per game).

The Giants will definitely need a strong game from quarterback Eli Manning after learning second-string running back Andre Brown was lost for the season with a broken leg.  Though Brown only had 385 rushing yards, it was his red-zone efficiency that really gave the Giants a boost.  The third-year back scored a team-best eight touchdowns on the ground before going down last Sunday.

What’s to come of this matchup?

The over/under for Monday night’s matchup is at 51. It may be a little low considering it will be a clash of two of the hottest offenses in the league.