LANDOVER, Md. — Coach Tom Coughlin says, “Ten wins is nothing to look the other way at . . . it’s an accomplishment in this league.” Yet if the Giants finish 10-6 and miss out on the playoffs, there will be an empty feeling around the organization.
The Giants get to 10 wins if they beat the Redskins today, but still need help to get into the postseason. If they don’t get in, it will mark only the second time in franchise history the Giants will have won 10 games and failed to make it into the playoffs — 1988 was the only time it happened.
Since the NFL’s realignment in 2002, four teams finished a season with double-digit victories and did not made the playoffs: the Dolphins (2003), Chiefs (2005), Browns (2007) and the Patriots (2008).
The Giants don’t want to join that list.
“I’m not going to be happy with that,” guard Chris Snee said. “I think that we expect much bigger things around here than to just finish with a win and be 10-6.
“We expect to be in the playoffs, contend to win the division, and be in the Super Bowl. That’s what we expect, and as of two weeks ago in the fourth quarter, that’s what we running towards.
*
No one gets beat by the Giants as often as the Redskins. The Giants have won five straight in the series and eight of the last nine games. . . . Expect to see Rich Seubert at center, Shawn Andrews at left tackle and David Diehl at left guard. Andrews will need a pain-killer injection in order for his back to hold up. The only other time that trio started together at those positions was Nov. 7 in Seattle. Diehl only made it to halftime of the 41-7 victory because of hamstring and hip injuries. “We’ve had to do it before and we’ve shown the capacity to adjust and the guys have stepped up and done what we needed to do to get a win,” offensive coordinator Kevin Gilbride said, “so we certainly look forward to them doing the same thing this week.”
*
One positive stat that gets overlooked because the Giants have been so careless (41 turnovers) with the ball: Their defense has forced 35 turnovers, which is second in the league and represents a huge improvement from last season’s 24 takeaways. . . .
Redskins coach Mike Shanahan took a look at how the Giants collapsed in the fourth quarter against the Eagles and determined it was more about Michael Vick than complete defensive breakdowns.
“When you take a look at Michael Vick and what he did in that last five, six minutes of the game, there is only one person who can make those plays,” Shanahan said. “Every other quarterback could be sacked and the game would’ve been over a number of times because they had the right defenses dialed up, but the guy just made some unbelievable plays that most human beings can’t make.”