Giants have to deal with not being in postseason -- again
Eli Manning of the New York Giants reacts after throwing his fourth interception of a game against the San Francisco 49ers at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J. on Nov. 16, 2014. Credit: Jim McIsaac
The Giants will have their own version of Black Friday when they return to work on Friday, mourning the end of the 2014 season.
When the Lions beat the Bears Thursday, it officially eliminated the Giants from contention for a playoff spot. It had been a few weeks since they had any realistic hope of making the postseason, and Sunday's loss to the Cowboys that extended their skid to six games eliminated them from NFC East contention.
The Giants will miss the playoffs for the third straight year and fifth time in six years. They are the first team to win a Super Bowl and then fail to make the playoffs for three straight years since the Packers won in 1967 and fell short the next four years.
The End comes embarrassingly early for the Giants, who are one of only seven teams in the NFL that have been eliminated before the calendar even turns to the final month of the season. Even last year, when they started the season with an unimaginable six straight losses, they weren't officially out of contention until Dec. 8, when they lost to the Chargers.
Seeing red
The Jaguars aren't good at many things, but one area they excel at is defense in the red zone. They lead the NFL with an opposing touchdown percentage inside the 20-yard line of 39.0 percent (16 in 41 possessions) and are one of only four teams in the league that have forced at least three turnovers in goal-to-go situations.
"Each game it seems like they have a different idea of what they are going to do," Eli Manning said of Jacksonville. "Not many teams run the ball very well against them down there. Teams are throwing it a bunch and they get a good rush. They have some good coverages and they change it up. They mix it up week to week and they are not real dependable in what they are going to do. They play fast. Not many teams are getting easy scores down there."
Giant steps
LB Jacquian Williams (concussion/shoulder) and G Geoff Schwartz (toe) did not practice after being limited on Wednesday. Williams has missed the last two games with his injuries and Schwartz is just off injured reserve . . . Antrel Rolle returned and was a full participant in practice after missing Wednesday's practice because of personal reasons . . . DE Mathias Kiwanuka (knee) and LB Jameel McClain (knee) were limited after sitting out Wednesday. T Justin Pugh (quad) was limited for a second straight day.
Tom Rock began covering sports for Newsday in 1996 and became its NFL columnist in 2022. He previously was Newsday's Giants beat writer beginning in 2008.
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