The Redskins discovered the sweet liberation of an identity a month ago when the team went retro with Joe Gibbs by uncorking a time capsule from the "Hog" era of brute force.
The Redskins dropped the pretenses of finesse and the clever disguises of grace and simply unmasked the Tonka Truck toughness of running back Clinton Portis, turning the line of scrimmage into his personal gravel pit.
What a relief to know who you are. How intimidating it is to be so self-assured.
PHOTO: AP
It is no wonder the Giants are so confused. One game from the end of the regular season, and they have yet to claim a distinct stamp.
Depending on the week, and according to Michael Strahan's musings, the Giants' defense is the worst he has ever played on or potentially the best. Depending on the schedule, and the shade of coach Tom Coughlin's cheeks, the Giants are either a reflection of his intensity at home or a contradiction of his disciplinarian ways with mindless mistakes, penalties and lethargy on the road.
The Giants are amorphous, confounding and impossible to grasp as they sway from invincible to vulnerable, but the most baffling crisis for the Giants is for Coughlin to define the answer to one question: Whose team is this, anyway?
PHOTO: AP
Is Eli Manning the peach-fuzzed face of the franchise? Or is Tiki Barber its best feature?
The answer, for now, should be Barber because, like Portis, he has earned the burden. But on Saturday, as the Giants flubbed their way to a 35-20 loss to the Redskins at FedEx Field, Coughlin continued to needlessly confuse the issue by forcing Manning into the man-of-the-moment role at the most inappropriate time: the National Football Conference East title was the Giants' to grab.
A week after Barber gained 220 yards, he was left as a bystander to a game plan bent on propping up Manning. Even Barber was surprised to carry the ball just 16 times on the way to 80 yards.
"We got away from what we do best," Barber said. "We didn't run the ball consistently enough."
Coughlin's waffling reveals how unsure he is of how to groom Manning. Put the game in his hands, or put it on Barber's legs? The first play against the Redskins was an expression of this conundrum: Manning dropped back and hoisted a deep pass to Plaxico Burress.
Burress twisted, and as he squinted against the sun, the ball bounced off his hands as he landed in the end zone 50 yards from Manning.
"I didn't make the play," Burress said.
The play was there. Good call, bad result. But many of the offensive calls that followed the Burress drop were programmed to highlight Manning, not ignite the team. Manning threw the ball 41 times and completed 23 for 244 yards, with one touchdown and one interception for a 71.6 rating.
The rating system has been diminished by the Giants' hierarchy because the victories have come anyway, because Manning has been at his best under pressure. But under duress against the Redskins, Manning didn't possess the pixie dust on his fingertips -- once again.
The beauty of the Giants is that Manning doesn't have to be the next Peyton Manning, just yet. Barber can buy him time, give him cover and allow him to develop at his own speed without Coughlin forcing evolution.
True, the Redskins keyed on Barber, all but baiting Manning into being a world beater. But 10 of the Giants' first 14 offensive plays were passes, hardly giving Barber a chance to try before the Redskins took the lead, 14-10, in the first quarter.
"We'd like to have played great," Manning said. "But give a lot of credit to Washington."The Redskins have their act together. The Giants are still searching.
The Giants are a self-professed warehouse of talent, with Pro Bowl tickets as proof, but the resourcefulness they've displayed in pulling out games is fickle. This makes them chameleons of consistency, a team that changes their effort and approach on a whim.
Next week, the Giants will travel to the Oakland Raiders' bizarre world of spikes and skulls on, of all crazy days, New Year's Eve. One more chance to clinch the NFC East. One more chance to establish an identity.
"We have to find a way to play with intensity on the road," Barber said. "We haven't played good on the road all year. We just have to push each other, motivate each other, because on the road, there's no one."
This is where knowing what you're all about can eliminate any doubts about who you are.
As it stands, they have only one defining quality: arrogance. The Giants were confident they would not squander their starry talent, or special season or their next chance to secure their spot at the NFC East's best.
"It's not over," Strahan said. "We're disappointed and upset, but if we were out of out it, there would be a very big depression around here."
Not a glum face among them. Not a face -- period.
Buccaneers 27, Falcons 24 (OT)
At Tampa, Florida, Matt Bryant redeemed himself and moved the Tampa Bay Buccaneers a step closer to the playoffs for the first time since winning the Super Bowl three seasons ago.
Bryant's 41-yard field goal with 15 seconds remaining in overtime gave the Bucs (10-5) the win over Atlanta Falcons and a share of first place in the NFC South heading into the final week of the season.
The Bucs are tied with Carolina, which lost to Dallas. They finish at home against the Saints, while Atlanta hosts Carolina.
NFC information manager Michael Signora confirmed that Atlanta (8-7) had been eliminated from playoff consideration. After the game, team spokesman Reggie Roberts said the Falcons were still alive but would need to beat the Panthers and gets lots of help from other teams to earn a wild-card spot.
Both teams wasted opportunities to win earlier in the extra period, with Atlanta's Todd Peterson having a 28-yarder blocked after recovering a fumble on the overtime kickoff, and Bryant shanking a 27-yarder that would have won it six minutes later.
Chris Simms threw for 285 yards and two touchdowns and Carnell "Cadillac" Williams ran for 150 yards to go over 1,000 for the season, including a 6-yard burst that tied the game 24-24 in the closing seconds of regulation.
Jaguars 38, Texans 20
At Houston, Fred Taylor's 15-yard touchdown run with just more than 9 minutes left allowed Jacksonville to clinch an AFC wild-card playoff berth.
The Jaguars trailed 13-10 at halftime and 20-17 in the fourth quarter before scoring three late touchdowns against the Texans, (2-13), who have the league's worst record and the inside track on the first pick in next April's draft -- likely Heisman Trophy winner Reggie Bush.
Jacksonville (11-4) added two touchdowns late in the game on a 36-yard reception by Ernest Wilford and a 17-yard run by LaBrandon Toefield that was set up by an interception. That touchdown was Toefield's third score of the day.
Cowboys 24, Panthers 20
At Charlotte, North Carolina, Terry Glenn caught a 2-yard touchdown pass with 24 seconds to play Saturday to give the Cowboys the win and ruin the Panthers' chance to lock up a postseason berth.
Dallas (9-6) needed a second chance to win, getting it when Julius Peppers was called for running into the kicker after Billy Cundiff missed a game-tying 33-yard field goal attempt with 1:12 to play. The Panthers thought Peppers -- who blocked a Cundiff attempt in the first half -- or Ken Lucas tipped the ball, but an official review said they didn't and Dallas had three more chances.
After two running plays, Drew Bledsoe found Glenn in the corner of the end zone for the game-winning score. It was a terrific bounceback for Dallas, which was humiliated 35-7 in Washington last week, and kept the Cowboys in contention for one of the NFC's wild-card spots.
The Panthers (10-5) now find themselves in a logjam for the NFC South title.
Broncos 22, Raiders 3
At Denver, Jake Plummer threw for 268 yards, Mike Anderson surpassed the 1,000-yard mark on the season as the Broncos clinched the AFC West and a first-round bye in the playoffs by beating the archrival Raiders.
At kickoff, Denver (12-3) had already secured its first division title since 1998 thanks to San Diego's 20-7 loss at Kansas City. Cincinnati's loss to Buffalo gave the Broncos a chance to wrap up the second seed in the AFC and the first-round bye in the playoffs that goes with it.
Kerry Collins was 17-for-41 for 178 yards for the Raiders and threw an interception in the Denver end zone. The Oakland offense moved the ball at times, but was overcome on almost every drive by untimely mistakes -- illegal procedure, holding, dropped passes, receivers who slipped.
Chiefs 20, Chargers 7
At Kansas City, Missouri, Larry Johnson went over 100 yards rushing for the eighth game in a row and the Chiefs won their 18th straight December home game, eliminating the defending AFC West champion Chargers from playoff contention and clinching the division title for Denver.
Playoff hopes remain alive for Kansas City (9-6), which seized a 20-7 halftime lead and made it stand.
San Diego (9-6) was flagged for seven penalties for 58 yards and had two turnovers and hardly resembled the tough-minded outfit that went into Indianapolis last week and ruined the Colts' unbeaten season.
Johnson scored on a 4-yard dash and a tackle-busting 28-yard catch-and-run from Trent Green, finishing with 131 yards rushing. Since he became the starter Nov. 1 after Priest Holmes went on injured reserve, Johnson has a league-leading 1,150 yards on the ground.
Steelers 41, Browns 0
At Cleveland, Ben Roethlisberger threw a touchdown pass and Willie Parker had an 80-yard TD run as the Steelers improved their playoff chances.
With thousands of their fans waving ``Terrible Towels'' from every corner of Cleveland Browns Stadium, the Steelers (10-5) dominated the Browns as thoroughly as in almost any meeting in the rivalry's 55-year history, outgaining them 457-178 and sacked rookie quarterback Charlie Frye eight times.
Pittsburgh, can clinch a wild-card playoff spot by beating Detroit at home next week.
Bills 37, Bengals 27
At Cincinnati, Terrence McGee ran a kickoff back 99 yards for a touchdown and returned an interception 46 yards for another Saturday as the Bills (5-10) broke a five-game losing streak.
For the first time all season, the Bengals (11-4) failed to win a game in which they were heavily favored. The 65,485 fans filed out glumly in their orange-and-black Santa hats after McGee made the final play of his remarkable game.
Filling in a second straight week for injured J.P. Losman, Kelly Holcomb went 24-of-31 for 308 yards and had a 1-yard touchdown dive early in the fourth quarter. He calmly led Buffalo on a drive to Rian Lindell's tiebreaking 22-yard field goal with 58 seconds to go.
Lions 13, Saints 12
At San Antonio, Jason Hanson rushed onto the field and kicked a 39-yard knuckleball field goal as the final seconds ticked off, giving the Detroit Lions a 13-12 victory.
New Orleans, which lost on a bizarre penalty and rekick on the final play two months ago against Atlanta, figured to have this one locked away when John Carney kicked his fourth field goal for a 12-10 lead with 1:52 to play.
Joey Harrington, who had been benched twice this season, then connected with Roy Williams for two big completions on the Lions' final drive. On the second, with about 13 seconds left, Williams caught the ball in the middle of the field. Detroit, with no timeouts had to hustle Hanson and the field goal unit onto the field and as the seconds ticked off, Hanson launched a low kick that knuckled through the uprights for the win.
Dolphins 24, Titans 10
At Miami, Ricky Williams rushed for 172 yards and helped the Miami Dolphins cap a perfect December.
The Dolphins (8-7), eliminated from playoff contention last week, have won five in a row for the first time since 1999. They went 4-0 in December under first-year coach Nick Saban, finishing the month unbeaten for the first time in 20 years.
The Titans (4-11) matched last season's loss total with one game still to go. They lost quarterback Steve McNair in the second quarter because of a strained pectoral muscle.
49ers 24, Rams 20
At St. Louis, Frank Gore ran 30 yards for a touchdown and seldom-used Maurice Hicks scored untouched on a 73-yarder on the game's first snap as the 49ers (3-12) ended a seven-game losing streak. The win dropped them behind Houston in the race for the first pick in next April's draft and the probable rights to Bush.
The 49ers swept the Rams (5-10) for the first time since 1998, also beating them 28-25 in the opener.
Cardinals 27, Eagles 21
At Tempe, Arizona, Josh McCown threw touchdown passes to Larry Fitzgerald and Anquan Boldin and the Cardinals beat the depleted Eagles.
Karlos Dansby returned an interception 11 yards for a score in the final game at its ``temporary'' home since the franchise moved from St. Louis in 1988.
The Cardinals (5-10) move to their US$370 million new stadium in the western suburb of Glendale next fall. The loss guarantees Philadelphia (6-9) its first losing season since 1999.
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