Friday December 31, 2010

The Associated Press

LANDOVER, Md. — The New York Giants’ first round of scoreboard-watching did not go well. If it doesn’t improve in a hurry, their regular season finale against the Washington Redskins will complete another late-season collapse — regardless of the final score.

For once, the Giants actually wanted dreaded rival Philadelphia to win, but the NFL’s rare Tuesday nighter went the other way when Minnesota pulled off the upset of the Eagles. That was a setback for New York because the result clinched a first-round bye for Chicago, and New York needs the Bears to go all out and beat Green Bay on Sunday.

Follow that? The Giants sure do.

“The only thing that I can say is that the Eagles hurt us,” defensive tackle Barry Cofield said. “The Eagles hurt us even when they don’t play us.”

The Giants (9-6) are in a pickle because of five quarters of disastrous football, starting with the fourth-quarter collapse against Michael Vick and the Eagles two weeks ago and continuing with last week’s 45-17 loss at Green Bay. Now their fate is intertwined with the results of at least three other games, so even the most convincing of wins against the Redskins (6-9) might not help New York’s bid for a playoff berth.

“It’s devastating. At the same time, no one put us in this position but us,” safety Antrel Rolle said. “We had it in the grasp of our hands, and we didn’t take

advantage of the opportunities. Now we have to leave it in the hands of something else. It’s something in this league that you never, ever want to do. You don’t ever want something else to try and control your destiny, you always want to have that control yourself.”

When you don’t, it leads to a Scoreboard Sunday. And the scenarios don’t look good for the men in blue.

First, there are the 1 o’clock games: Tampa Bay at New Orleans and Carolina at Atlanta. The Giants are rooting for the Buccaneers (9-6) to beat the Saints (11-4) and the Panthers (2-13) to pull off the almighty upset of the season against the Falcons (12-3).

Those two results are needed to give Chicago motivation against Green Bay — because the Bears could then beat the Packers to claim NFC homefield advantage throughout the playoffs.

And, of course, the Giants absolutely, positively need Green Bay to lose. Only a New York win and a Green Bay loss (not counting the various scenarios for games ending in ties) will get the Giants into the postseason.

Both games start in the 4 o’clock hour, and it’ll take quite a bit of focus to resist taking a peak at the latest score from Wisconsin.

“I’m not going to be eyeing it every second because we’ve got to keep our focus on what’s going on,” quarterback Eli Manning said. “It doesn’t matter if one team is up by three points — it’s not going to make a difference for us. The worst thing that could happen is all of a sudden we think we don’t have a shot to make the playoffs and we don’t prepare, we don’t go and play our hardest and Chicago wins.”

That’s what you can’t let happen. We’ve got to go in expecting everything to work out for the best, feeling that Chicago is going to win for us. Go in with that attitude and if that doesn’t work out, all we did was give it our best shot and it didn’t work our way.”

The Giants had an unusual start to their week of preparation, spending an extra full day in Wisconsin after the Green Bay loss because of the big snowstorm back east. They returned to hear questions about coach Tom Coughlin’s future and the possibility of becoming the first 10-win NFC team to miss the playoffs since 1991.

“We have one thought in mind,” Coughlin said, “and that is to play the kind of game that we can all be proud of, to win our 10th game, to go 3-3 in the division and to at least get rid of the taste from the other night and give ourselves something to be proud of here as we finish the regular season — and then whatever happens happens.”

The Redskins have a chance to play spoiler for the second straight game, having toppled Jacksonville in overtime last week to break a four-game skid. The main focus of attention in Washington is the play of Rex Grossman, who has had one good game and one so-so game in his three-week trial following the benching of Donovan McNabb.

“I’m getting a chance to prove that I can play and play at a high level,” Grossman said. “However it comes, I’ll take it.”

The New York Giants won’t have wide receiver Hakeem Nicks and center Shaun O’Hara for Sunday’s game against the Washington Redskins.

Nicks hasn’t practiced all week because of a broken toe. O’Hara has been struggling all season with foot injuries. He’s missed practice all week.

The Giants also may be without cornerback Corey Webster. He’s questionable with a rib injury. He hasn’t practiced all week, which could be an indication he won’t play.

Defensive end Dave Tollefson is out with a knee injury.

The Giants list cornerback Brian Jackson (knee) and defensive tackle Chris Canty (neck) as questionable, but they have practiced this week and should be able to play.

Senior writer John Clayton covers the NFL for ESPN.com.

NEW YORK GIANTS (9-6) At WASHINGTON (6-9)

Sunday, 4:15 p.m., FOX

OPENING LINE—NY Giants by 3 1/2

RECORD VS. SPREAD—NY Giants 7-8; Washington 8-5-2

SERIES RECORD—Giants lead 91-62-4

LAST MEETING—Giants beat Redskins 31-7, Dec. 5, 2010

LAST WEEK—Giants lost to Packers 45-17; Redskins beat Jaguars 20-17 OT

GIANTS OFFENSE—OVERALL (3), RUSH (5), PASS (9)

GIANTS DEFENSE—OVERALL (6), RUSH (9), PASS (8)

REDSKINS OFFENSE—OVERALL (19), RUSH (29), PASS (10)

REDSKINS DEFENSE—OVERALL (32), RUSH (25), PASS (31)

STREAKS, STATS AND NOTES—Giants need win and Green Bay loss (not counting tie scenarios) to avoid missing playoffs for second straight year. … Last 10-win Giants team not to make postseason was 10-6 squad in 1988. … New York has won five straight in series and eight of last nine. … Giants lead league with 35 forced fumbles and 20 fumble recoveries, but also lead league with 17 lost fumbles and 41 giveaways. … QB Eli Manning(notes) needs 241 yards passing to become first Giants QB with consecutive 4,000-yard seasons. … Redskins have lost three straight vs. NFC East by combined score of 123-65. … Washington’s last four wins have all been by margin of three points, including three that went to overtime. … Redskins coach Mike Shanahan needs win to avoid matching worst record in 17 seasons as NFL coach. He went 6-10 with Denver in 1999. … NFL teams have forced 10 turnovers this season when other team has first-and-goal from 5 or closer; Redskins have forced three of them. … Washington QB Rex Grossman(notes) last started against Giants in December 2007, when he passed for 296 yards with one touchdown and no interceptions for Bears in a 21-16 loss.

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — New York Giants center Shaun O’Hara said on Thursday that he will likely need offseason surgery to “clean out” an ankle injury that has plagued him throughout the year.

O’Hara missed practice for the second straight day on Thursday with “swelling and pain” in his left foot and Achilles and may be forced to sit out Sunday’s game in Washington.

If O’Hara can’t play, left guard Rich Seubert will likely play center. Left tackle David Diehl said on Thursday that that he’s been practicing at left guard this week. If Diehl shifts to guard against Washington, Shawn Andrews will likely line up at left tackle, giving the Giants their seventh different starting combination on the offensive line.

O’Hara, however, is holding out hope that he can practice Friday and suit up on Sunday.

“I’m hoping that it feels better by tomorrow. Today was a frustrating day to be [a spectator],” he said.

O’Hara has been hampered throughout the season by a left ankle injury he suffered in training camp, one of several ailments he’s dealt with in 2010. O’Hara also injured his left Achilles in the preseason and suffered a mild right Lisfranc sprain in Week 7 at Dallas.

He said there’s a “good chance” that he will need surgery during the offseason.

“I think that’s something that we’re probably going to look at whenever the season ends in February,” O’Hara said. “We’ll have that option and we’ll see what we’re going to do but I think there’s probably a pretty good chance that I’ll need a clean-out of some sort.”

O’Hara said the injury flared up midway through the first quarter on Sunday in Green Bay. The ankle was “really sore” after the game and the center took the last two days off to try to limit the swelling.

“It’s been tough. I don’t feel like I’ve been able to move like I normally have,” said O’Hara, who was voted to the Pro Bowl on Tuesday despite playing in just six games this season. “But that’s football and you have to find a way to get the job done.”

The ankle and Achilles injuries forced O’Hara to miss three games earlier in the season. He returned for two games against Detroit and Dallas but sat out the next six with the right Lisfranc injury. O’Hara returned to his customary center position against Philadelphia in Week 14.

“I was hoping for the best, hoping that it wouldn’t come back and flare up but it did and so I’m just trying to battle,” O’Hara said.

Ian Begley is a regular contributor to ESPNNewYork.com.