The Washington Redskins still have plenty of distance to cover as they try to climb back toward respectability, but they made it clear yesterday that they have not surrendered on their season. The opponent was more formidable this time, but the Redskins crafted their first two-game winning streak under Coach Marty Schottenheimer by beating the New York Giants, 35-21, before 80,316 at FedEx Field.
"We have to feel like we're getting better," Redskins quarterback Tony Banks said. "That's a good Giants team over there."
Michael Westbrook, No. 82, scores a 67-yard touchdown pass with just under seven minutes to play. New York's Shaun
Williams, No. 36, and Jason Sehorn, No. 31, give chase.
(Stephen J. Boitano - AP)
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_____Game Ball_____
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_____Play of the Game_____
Redskins wide receiver Kevin Lockett completed a 31-yard touchdown pass to a wide-open Derrius Thompson on the fourth play of the second half.
The play was set up when quarterback Tony Banks lateraled to Lockett, who was lined up as the outside receiver to the left.
Thompson sprinted down the left side past New York Giants rookie cornerback Will Peterson and caught his first career touchdown pass.
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_____He Said It_____
Go in the locker room and see what kind of of people we have in there. It's important to them, and they're working hard.
Marty Schottenheimer, on the Redskins' reversal
Sunday's quotesheet
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_____Next Game_____
Redskins (2-5) vs. Seattle (3-3)
Where: FedEx Field
When: 4:15 p.m. Sunday
TV: CBS
This Week: The Seahawks lost to Miami, 24-20, in Seattle.
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The Giants, who lost their third straight game to fall to 3-4, were accommodating, just as the one-win Carolina Panthers had been a week before in helping the Redskins to their first victory. The Giants fumbled on their second offensive play to help the Redskins to their first touchdown, a 12-yard pass from Banks to rookie wide receiver Rod Gardner.
But the defending NFC champions overcame a two-touchdown deficit to tie the game at 14 in the second quarter and pulled to 27-21 early in the fourth quarter on quarterback Kerry Collins's third touchdown pass of the afternoon.
The Redskins (2-5) had to be resourceful, and they were. They got an 89-yard punt return for a touchdown by Eric Metcalf the first time he touched the ball as a Redskin. They got a 31-yard touchdown pass from one wide receiver, Kevin Lockett, to another, Derrius Thompson, on a third-quarter lateral play. And they got a 76-yard touchdown pass from Banks to forgotten-man wideout Michael Westbrook with less than seven minutes to play.
Place kicker Brett Conway kicked a 43-yard field goal as time expired in the first half to give the Redskins a 17-14 lead, and added a 20-yard field goal in the third quarter. Tailback Stephen Davis had his first 100-yard rushing game of the season, running for 107 yards on 29 carries, and backup Ki-Jana Carter added 40 rushing yards on two carries. The Redskins went without a turnover.
Schottenheimer received a Gatorade dousing from linebacker LaVar Arrington on the sideline, and said later: "There has not been a whole lot normal that has transpired in the first seven weeks. . . . Any time you come into a new situation, it's difficult because on what basis do they [the players] trust me? Just because we've been in this business for a while? You've got to earn that."
Said Redskins right tackle Jon Jansen: "It took a while for the coach to know us and us to know him. But now we've gotten it going a little bit."
Collins had touchdown passes of six yards to wide receiver Amani Toomer, 27 yards to wideout Ike Hilliard and one yard to fullback Greg Comella, but was intercepted by safety Keith Lyle on a tipped ball in the end zone with just over four minutes to play. Collins completed 32 of 52 passes for 346 yards, but the Giants had only 42 rushing yards against a Redskins' defense that welcomed back starting ends Bruce Smith and Marco Coleman.
The Giants were generous at the outset. Collins tried to hand the ball to Toomer on an end around on their second offensive play. But Toomer dropped the ball. Defensive tackle Kenard Lang already was on the ground, and the ball landed next to him. He made the recovery at the Giants 17-yard line.
Banks scrambled for five yards on first down and Davis was stopped for no gain on second down. On third down, Banks looked for Gardner, the rookie who had a six-catch, 208-yard performance against the Panthers. Gardner got inside cornerback William Peterson, and Banks put his throw on target.
The Giants moved to the Redskins 39 but stalled when tailback Tiki Barber dropped a third-down pass. The Redskins went nowhere on offense and punted, but stopped the Giants when Coleman and defensive tackle Dan Wilkinson pressured Collins into a third-down incompletion.
Enter Metcalf, the 33-year-old return specialist who had a workout with the Redskins on Tuesday and was signed on Wednesday. The former O'Connell High star had not played a regular season game since 1999, having sat out last season and been released by the Oakland Raiders this summer. But he is among the most successful returners in league history, and he was summoned because the Redskins had only 19 yards on punt returns this season when the day began.
Rodney Williams, who was released by the Redskins prior to last season, hit a low punt that was not angled toward the sideline properly. Metcalf caught the ball at the 11 and headed up the left side of the field into a jumble of players. He maneuvered across the field to the right sideline and got outside, then cut back around the Giants' Ralph Brown and got into open territory. He outran Dave Thomas to the end zone for his first punt-return touchdown since 1997 and the 10th in his career, upping his NFL record. Metcalf moved past Brian Mitchell, the former Redskin now with the Philadelphia Eagles, for the NFL's career lead with 12 touchdowns on punt and kickoff returns.
