Giants vs. Redskins: Turning Point Of Week 3 Win

The New York Giants didn’t have the prettiest of games Thursday night against the Washington Redskins, but they were able to get into the win column for the first time this season. The Giants were able to pick up a win over the Redskins by a 32-21 score, as they had control of the game virtually right after the kickoff. Why is that you ask? Well, that is where we saw the turning point of the game, as the Giants were finally the team to come out on the positive side of a break.

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The Giants started the game kicking off to the Redskins. It looked like the Redskins were getting off to a strong start, as Kirk Cousins completed a 30-yard pass to Chris Thompson on third-and-two. But, tight end Jordan Reed was called for pass interference, as the pick play he ran was a little too blatant and the referees caught it.

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Because of that, the Redskins were forced into third-and-long and were unable to convert. On the ensuing punt, both the Giants and Redskins committed penalties, so they were offsetting. This is where the tide of the game began to turn for the Giants, as Rashad Jennings was able to push through his blocker and block the punt of Tress Way. It went out bounds through the end zone, so the Giants were awarded a safety and 2-0 lead.

The Giants were unable to make anything on the drive following the free kick, being forced to punt after gaining only 18 yards. Brad Wing planted a ball at the 12-yard line to set the Redskins up with poor field position that was only made worse when Terrance Plummer was called for a holding penalty. With their backs against the goal line inside the 10-yard line, this is when things turned worse for the Redskins and the Giants took advantage.

On second down, Kirk Cousins dropped back to pass. He targeted Pierre Garcon on his left, but was baited a little bit by Prince Amukamara. Cousins fell right into the bait, and Amukamara broke on the ball. It resulted in an interception, the first of the season for Amukamara, and set the Giants up deep in Redskins territory.

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Four plays later, Andre Williams would pound it in for his first touchdown of the season. It put the Giants ahead in the game 9-0, giving them control. Even though this all came within the first nine minutes of the game, it put the Giants in a comfortable position leading the game and the Redskins in an uncomfortable one trying to comeback.

The Redskins success this season has been on the ground. Alfred Morris and Matt Jones have been dominant the first two weeks of the season, combining for 231 yards. The Redskins had the best rushing attack in the NFL through two games, in most part because they were able to control the tempo. They led for a majority of the game against both the Dolphins and Rams, so they were able to stick with the run game. Being put in an early hole against the Giants led to them to rely on the arm of Cousins more than the legs of Morris and Jones.

The results speak for themselves, as they were never able to really challenge the Giants after that. The Giants run defense, as they had through the first two weeks of the season, stepped up once again against the strong Redskins attack.

The Redskins were only able to rush the ball 20 times for 88 yards, averaging out to a decent 4.4 yards per carry. But, because the Giant got out to an early lead and the Redskins could not rely on the running game, their game plan had to change and the results were not very pretty.

Cousins isn’t a quarterback built to carry a team and bring them back from a deficit. The Giants knew this, and they did their best to jump out to an early lead and force the Redskins to rely on him. That is exactly what happened, and the Giants came away with their first victory of the season, going from last to second place in the NFC East with one victory.

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