NFL

Griffin, settling for field goals do in Giants as East tightens

ENOUGH! A seemingly beaten Justin Tuck heads back onto the field to deal with Robert Griffin III and the Redskins’ dynamic attack. (Charles Wenzelberg/New York Post)

LANDOVER, Md. — The Giants did not put a stranglehold on the NFC East, certainly didn’t subdue the raging threat that is Robert Griffin III and the upstart Redskins, and ensured the stretch run might be just as angst-ridden as last year’s fight to the finish.

“We’ve been down these roads before, it’s always tough and I like it that way,’’ Justin Tuck said.

There is no way anyone associated with the Giants can like it this way, not after they did last night what they almost never do — blow a halftime lead on the road — and as a result they are going to have nightmares of RG3 and Alfred Morris dancing all over them. After wasting chances and still entering the fourth quarter with a 16-10 lead, the Giants couldn’t hold off the Redskins and Eli Manning couldn’t get a sniff of a comeback drive, which added up to a 17-16 loss that was as damaging to the Giants as it was frustrating.

“We still have all of our goals ahead of us, would have loved to have gotten this win and separated ourselves in the division,’’ Mathias Kiwanuka said. “But we made the road a little tougher, and now we gotta slug through it.”

By blowing a fourth-quarter lead, the Giants (7-5) hold a tenuous one-game lead on the Cowboys (6-6) and Redskins (6-6) for first place in the NFC East.

“There’s one team with seven [wins], two with six wins with four to go,’’ said Tom Coughlin, who might as well have added “You do the math.’’

This one didn’t add up for the Giants. Dating to 2006, they had won 26 straight games on the road when they led at halftime, which they did in this one, 13-10. This time, they could not finish the job and they breathed life into the Redskins, winners of three straight.

“I hate those mother-[bleepers],’’ Redskins owner Daniel Snyder exclaimed to one of his staffers in his team’s locker room.

The Giants want no part of Snyder’s club, not after they barely beat the Redskins the first time around and couldn’t deal any better with Griffin (101.9 quarterback rating, 72 rushing yards) or Alfred Morris (22 carries, 124 yards) the second time around.

The Giants dominated the ball, were brilliant on third down and owned time of possession, but they could only manage one touchdown, falling into their familiar trap of coming up short on drives and settling for field goals. They unleashed a new bad habit, committing costly penalties — nine of them — none worse than a hold on Jim Cordle (his second of the game) that negated a huge 50-yard, fourth-quarter kickoff return by David Wilson into Washington territory. They also got a rare missed field goal from Lawrence Tynes, a 43-yarder in the second quarter.

Clinging to a 16-10 lead, the Giants couldn’t lay a glove on Griffin and couldn’t deal with the punishing Morris as the Redskins put together a 12-play, 86-yard drive, finished off when RG3 rolled to his right and easily hit a wide-open Pierre Garcon on an 8-yard touchdown pass for a one-point lead and the winning points with 11:31 remaining. The Giants got the ball twice after that and Manning couldn’t do a thing with it. The Redskins then ran off the final 3:51 to seal it without Manning getting his hands on the ball again.

“We didn’t want to give him a chance,’’ Redskins offensive tackle Trent Williams said. “He does this for a living, he’s a killer on those fourth-quarter drives.’’

The third offensive series for the Giants was a strange one. They went 85 yards on 13 plays, draining 7:23 off the clock before Manning spread the field and drilled a 4-yard touchdown pass to Martellus Bennett. The drive included three penalties on the Giants — a false start by Hakeem Nicks, a delay of game on Manning and a 10-yard hold on Sean Locklear — yet they were able to score, aided by a 21-yard pass interference penalty on cornerback Cedric Griffin against Nicks.

The Redskins, trailing 3-0, got on the board in a strange way in the first quarter. As Griffin was hit after a 12-yard run to the 13-yard line, he fell on his back and the ball popped loose — it almost looked as if he shoveled it forward — and the ball was plucked out of the air by receiver Joshua Morgan. As the Giants defenders stood flat-footed, thinking the play was over, Morgan sprinted 13 yards untouched for a touchdown to make it 7-3. That completed a four-play, 80-yard drive that resembled a fast-break attack.

“It is what it is, you can’t be down about it,’’ Manning said. “The next four games will be big games. We have to play better football and find a way to win games.’’

paul.schwartz@nypost.com