Game Prediction: NYG 20, WAS 24

Update: Fred Smoot was knocked unconcious in practice and received a concussion but has not yet been declared out of the game. As the RCB, Smoot would cover Ike Hilliard and if he cannot play, then Hilliard will likely be covered by Rashad Bauman who is returning from a hamstring injury. Based on this news I am upgrading the passing numbers for the Giants. Hilliard would play better without Smoots, but knowing that Smoots is gone, the Redskins could give more help on that side which would give better opportunities to Amani Toomer. This game will be harder to "connect the dots" in analyzing since the Giants come off a short week and bitter loss and are on the road to a team that is trying to dodge the effects of Hurricane Isabel. While all that makes the game hard to calculate, the one undeniable thing is that Rashad Bauman is not as good as a healthy Fred Smoot. I am assuming Smoot is unable to play but that determination may not be made up until game time.

Patrick Ramsey has practiced with his shore shoulder and is improving and expected to play.

The Giants come off a loss in the worst way - falling behind to a lesser team, battling back to take the lead with only 11 seconds left and then special teams coach Bruce Read utters those three little words "kick it left". In this case, that meant left - left - left - until it went out of bounds on the one yard line giving the Cowboys one play get close enough to try to kick a long field goal to tie (they did). The Giants and Cowboys traded a couple of series until Billy Cundiff kicked a record tying seventh field goal to win the game.

The Giants started three rookie linemen due to injuries and fell behind 23-7 at the half. They mounted a tremendous comeback in the fourth quarter, scoring 17 points to take the lead. Kerry Collins was only 7 of 21 for 100 yards at the first half but finished with 265 yards and three touchdowns. His big three receivers all scored - Amani Toomer (7-126), Ike Hilliard (6-85) and Jeremy Shockey (2-8) who himself absolutely dropped a sure touchdown that Hilliard later scored.

Tiki Barber had 41 yards on 15 carries but only added seven yards on two receptions. The Cowboys had the Giants number for the entire first half and gained a big enough lead to force New York to the air in the second half.

The alarming fact for the Giants is that their defense has yielded the most passing yardage of any team in the NFL with 663 yards. While St. Louis as an opponent is one thing, allowing Quincy Carter to have his first 300 yard game on national TV on Monday night is quite another. The Giants were not stung by one or two long bombs for scores, they were hurt by 25 completions that kept moving the ball (but only for a field goal though by the seventh time it really hurt). The longest pass completed by Dallas was only 27 yards. The Rams had one pass that was 37 yards long the previous week, but almost all were well under under 20 yards.

Like so many other teams, the Giants came into the season with a playoff stamp already on them and after week two, they look a bit less than they should. You can chalk up Parcells having some New York magic or that the win over St. Louis was still a win. But it cannot be denied that now the Giants have given up the most passing yardage in the NFL to Quincy Carter during a rain storm and a QB that had a concussion the entire game and who now is benched. All this while the Giants were playing at home in swirling winds. The last thing the Giants need now is to face another passing team - hey look! It's the Redskins!

Washington, doing more than their share to keep the league interesting and unpredictable, is now 2-0. The Redskins are ranked third in yards gained per game (381) and third in yards allowed per game (221). The Redskins are ranked second against the pass (151) even though they won both games.

Spurrier's willingness to use the run has opened up the pass - 'gasp'!

Patrick Ramsey threw for 356 yards and two scores against the Falcons and Lavernues Coles currently leads the league with 286 yards in only two games. While Rod Gardner was relatively quiet against the Jets, he too gained 118 yards against the Falcons. The Redskins are settling into using two main receivers along with a tandem rushing game to move the ball. It's almost like, well, a normal offense. Spurrier has a run to pass ratio the past two weeks of 34:27 and 31:39.

Patrick Ramsey was sacked six times by the Atlanta 3-4 defense and injured his shoulder in the process. He continued to play through the pain, bringing the Redskins back from a early 17-0 deficit to the eventual 33-31 win. Ramsey will be evaluated this week but again - he played through the injury last week and is assumed to be good to go this week as well.

Lavernues Coles also took a shot to the helmet that left him woozy in the game but he returned.

Trung Canidate (15-89) and Ladell Betts (11-34) are sharing carries but once the ball gets close, Rock Cartwright (3-1) has been the man since he carried the ball three consecutive plays from the one yard line until he scored.

This week's game will be interesting. The Giants are talented and yet fell behind last week, mounted a comeback only to lose the game to a clearly less talented team. The Redskins also fell behind last week but showed poise in mounting their own successful comeback. This is the first road game for New York after a devastating and emotional loss. They may be mad and they may be just befuddled. At the least, they are just not stopping players in the secondary enough.

The rushing game here should not be big on either side but the passing game with Coles and Gardner should have some success. Back at home with new confidence, the Redskins greet the Giants who just had theirs shaken. Look for an excellent game that could go either way but for the Redskins to atone for their two losses to New York last year in a nail biter.