Giants Lean on Big Defense to Tame Lions

N.Y. Giants 16, Detroit 10

New York Giants running back Brandon Jacobs (27) scores a touchdown on a 10-yard reception against the Detroit Lions in the second quarter of an NFL football game in Detroit, Sunday, Nov. 18, 2007. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya) (Paul Sancya - AP)

DETROIT -- The New York Giants leaned on their defense to gain the advantage in the NFC wild-card race. Barely. Michael Strahan had a season-high three sacks while James Butler and Sam Madison both made victory-sealing interceptions, helping New York beat the Detroit Lions 16-10 Sunday.

Eli Manning threw a touchdown pass to Brandon Jacobs, who later left the game with an injury, and Lawrence Tynes kicked three field goals to give the Giants more than enough offense.

Or, so it seemed.

Detroit finally put together a strong drive, ending with Calvin Johnson's 35-yard TD catch to pull within six with 4:34 left.

After a three-and-out drive, Detroit drove to midfield and Jon Kitna heaved an up-for-grabs pass to Shaun McDonald that Butler leaped to snag just inside the end zone.

The Lions had one more chance, getting the ball at their 32 with 1:25 left, but a pass went off McDonald's hands in New York territory and right to Madison in the final minute.

New York (7-3) broke a third-place tie with Detroit in the conference and improved its chances of making the playoffs. In the Super Bowl era, 78.4 percent of teams that won seven of their first 10 games ended up in the postseason.

The win came at a price: Jacobs was sidelined in the third quarter with a left hamstring injury and linebacker Mathias Kiwanuka broke his left leg early in the game.

Detroit (6-4) dropped back-to-back games for the first time this year and lost for the first time at Ford Field, where it will host the NFC North-leading Green Bay Packers on Thanksgiving.

New York kept the Lions in the game by fumbling twice inside their 30.

But Detroit gave the ball back too many times.

Kitna threw three interceptions, overshadowing the 28 passes he completed for 377 yards and a score. McDonald and Roy Williams both went over the 100-yard mark as the Lions were forced to throw because they could not run. Kevin Jones was limited to just 25 yards on 11 carries.

Manning was 28-of-39 for 283 yards with a score, spreading the ball around to five receivers who made at least four catches.

Jacobs had 54 yards rushing and 49 yards receiving before hopping off the field on his right leg, trying to protect his injured hamstring.

New York plodded to a 10-0 lead at halftime and led 13-3 after three quarters.

The Lions had a hard time rallying because they were 1-for-10 on third-down conversions.