Ahmad Bradshaw celebrates one of his three touchdowns in the Giants’ win over the Bills. (Getty Images)
(Anthony J. Causi)
The Giants finally found their running game, and it has them heading into the bye week with hope for a second half of the season that is bound to be a lot tougher.
Ahmad Bradshaw ran for 104 yards and a career-best three touchdowns and Lawrence Tynes kicked a go-ahead 23-yard field goal with 1:32 remaining to give the New York Giants a 27-24 victory over the Buffalo Bills on Sunday.
Bradshaw scored on three 1-yard runs and had a 30-yard run to help set up Tynes’ winner as the Giants (4-2) rebounded from a bad loss to Seattle last weekend by limiting the high-scoring Bills (4-2) to seven second-half points.
It marked the first time this season the Giants had a runner gain more than 100 yards.
Ryan Fitzpatrick was 21 of 30 for 244 yards and threw touchdown passes of 60 yards to Naaman Roosevelt and 9 yards to Stevie Johnson, but his final attempt was batted down by Jason Pierre-Paul on a fourth-and-5 from the Bills 25 to preserve the win.
Fitzpatrick also was intercepted twice by Corey Webster, with the last starting the possession that led to the winning kick.
Eli Manning was nearly perfect against the Bills’ ballhawking defense, completing 21 of 32 for 292 yards and no interceptions. Buffalo came in with 12 interceptions and its defense had set up 79 points.
The Giants didn’t turn the ball over once.
Fred Jackson had another monster game for Buffalo, rushing for 121 yards, including a career-high 80-yard TD run. He also caught five passes for 47 yards.
After tying the game on the 9-yard pass to Johnson, Buffalo appeared in position to take the lead when Fitzpatrick completed a 32-yard pass to David Nelson for a first down at the New York 27.
However, he went for the lead on a go-pattern to Johnson down the left sideline and Webster was all over it, intercepting at the 5. Johnson was called for a very flagrant facemask, giving New York the ball at its own 20.
Bradshaw had a 10-yard run on first down and then ripped off his 30-yarder around left end two plays later for a first down at the Bills 37. Two pass interference penalties against Drayton Florence eventually got New York a first and goal and Tynes, who had a 26-yard field goal in the first half, kicked another short one.
The Giants had a chance to take a 14-point lead late in the third quarter when Manning hit Mario Manningham in stride on a pass from the Bills 37-yard line. Manningham caught the ball, but cornerback Terrence McGee stripped it out as the receiver fell in the end zone.
The pass was ruled incomplete. The Giants challenged and lost.
When the drive stalled, Tynes’ 51-yard field-goal attempt to put the Giants up by 10 was blocked by Alex Carrington.
Buffalo took over at its 40, overcame a second-and-20 after a sack by Osi Umenyiora and tied the game on Fitzpatrick’s 9-yard TD pass to Johnson with 8:57 to play.
New York had take 24-17 lead with a 10-play, 75-yard drive that Bradshaw capped after a review ruled that Manningham did not score on a pass reception from the 7 that had originally been ruled a touchdown.
The first half was a mixture of the Bills’ big-play offense and the Giants more methodical approach with the ball. It ended in a draw with the teams tied at 17.
Bradshaw scored on a pair of 1-yard runs for the Giants and the Bills got touchdowns on Jackson’s long run — just one play from scrimmage after Bradshaw’s first TD — and a 60-yard catch and run by Roosevelt, his first career TD.
Tynes kicked a 26-yard field goal for the Giants, while Rian Lindell had a 49-yarder for the Bills with 24 seconds left in the half.
Bradshaw had given the Giants the lead on the previous possession, scoring just two plays after Manning hit Hakeem Nicks on a 60-yard pass down the left sideline, New York’s biggest play of the half.