Giants at Jets
THE STORY: After suffering atrocious losses last week, New York rivals meet on Saturday battling for their playoff lives at MetLife Stadium. The Jets, who are deemed the home team in the contest, were routed at Philadelphia last week and need wins in their final two games to clinch a playoff berth. Meanwhile, Eli Manning’s hot hand fizzled out in an embarrassing setback against the Washington Redskins a week ago. Manning threw three interceptions in the loss, forcing the Giants to sweep their final two games to earn their spot in the playoffs. The Giants have won the past four games in the series.
TV: FOX, 1 p.m. ET. LINE: Jets -3, O/U 46
ABOUT THE GIANTS (7-7): Despite last week’s loss the Giants still control their own fate. A win against the Jets and in the season finale against the Cowboys would give the Giants the NFC East title. Since starting the season 6-2, the Giants have lost five of their last six games and needed a late rally to beat Dallas for their only win in the terrible stretch. Despite last week’s dismal performance, Manning has already set the franchise mark for passing yards in a season and is one of four quarterbacks on pace to break Dan Marino’s all-time mark. He also needs one TD pass in the fourth quarter to break the NFL mark. The Giants have a long list of injuries, including DE Osi Umenyiora (doubtful, ankle) but DE Justin Tuck hopes to return.
ABOUT THE JETS (8-6): While the Giants bank on a powerful offense hoping to offset its defensive woes, the opposite is true for the Jets. Rex Ryan’s defense is ranked seventh in the NFL but its enigmatic offense is 26th. Shonn Greene has turned things around to pace the running game and needs 59 yards to eclipse the 1,000-yard mark for the first time in his career. Santonio Holmes has scored a TD in five straight games but the passing game is inconsistent at best. QB Mark Sanchez suffered a neck injury against the Eagles but will play. RB-KR Joe McKnight is doubtful and safety Jim Leonhard was placed on IR two weeks ago. The Jets are 6-1 at home on the season and, despite Ryan’s claims as a defensive guru, they’ve scored at least 24 points in every win this season.
EXTRA POINTS:
1. The Giants are ranked eighth in total offense but 28th in defense.
2. Because this is a Jet home game, their fans were awarded the tickets.
3. The Jets beat the Giants 17-3 in the preseason.