The Giants held their last practice of the week Friday afternoon and got some good news. Brandon Jacobs and Justin Tuck, both limited in earlier sessions, were able to suit up and participate. That's good news since it is looking more and more like the team won't have Plaxico Burress, Ahmad Bradshaw or Fred Robbins on hand when Sunday's game kicks off. All three were on the sidelines at practice today, usually a bad indicator for their game status.
None of their absences should hurt the Giants all that much. While the Redskins promise to provide a physical, gritty challenge worthy of a divisional rival, they are in even worse shape physically. Clinton Portis is hurting in more parts of his body than he isn't, left tackle Chris Samuels has been limited all week and two defensive starters, middle linebacker London Fletcher and defensive end Andre Carter, will be game-time decisions. Those are just the highlights of their injury report, which runs slightly shorter than a Tolstoy novel.
That means Sunday is shaping up as a war of attrition and no team in the league is better equipped for such a game than the Giants. Portis is essential to the team's success and Samuels is a big part of determining how successful Portis can be in the rushing game. He's also charged with keeping Jason Campbell out of trouble. Even if Tuck is slowed by an injured leg, the Redskins will be vulnerable to attack to the quarterback's blind side.
A win Sunday will get the Giants very close to wrapping up home field throughout the playoffs. They'd have a two game lead with four to play. Does anyone who has seen the Giants play this year think they are going anything less than .500 over the last month?
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