30-year old Eli Manning is a solid but not great QB.  At this point in his career, he is what he is.  Manning played in all 16 games for the Giants last season and he completed 339 of 539 passes (62.9%) for 4,002 yards with 31 TD passes and 25 INTs (85.3 QB Rating).  He also carried the ball 32 times for 70 yards (2.2 ypc) last season.  He has now played in 105 games in his 7 years with the Giants and he has completed 1,932 of 3,332 passes (58%) for 22,646 yards with 156 TD passes and 113 INTs (80.2 QB Rating).  Manning also has carried the ball 158 times for 350 yards (2.2 ypc) with 3 TD runs in his career.  I don’t see the Giants changing QBs any time soon.

30-year old Jim Sorgi was Peyton Manning’s backup in Indy before backing up his brother last season for the Giants.  He didn’t get onto the field for the Giants last season.  Sorgi has played in 16 games in his NFL career and he has completed 99 of 156 passes (63.5%) for 929 yards with 6 TD passes and 1 INT (89.9 QB Rating).  He also has carried the ball 31 times for 0 yards (0.0 ypc) in his NFL career.  Most of those carries were kneel downs at the end of games.

VERDICT:  Although the Giants would probably like Manning to cut down on the pickoffs, I don’t see them making any changes at QB for 2011.

31-year old G/C Rich Seubert had surgery yesterday to repair a dislocated kneecap.  He might not be ready for training camp because of this injury.  Seubert played in 16 games (all starts) for the Giants last season.  He has now played in 104 games (88 starts) in his first 10 years with the Giants.  We’ll see if the Giants decide to bring Seubert back next season because he faces a long recovery time due to this injury.

The Giants didn’t play great by any means yesterday but just good enough to prevail.  Eli Manning was solid as he completed 17 of 29 passes for 243 yards with 1 TD pass and 1 INT.  He also carried the ball 4 times for 11 yards (2.8 ypc) in this game.  Brandon Jacobs led the way for the Giants in this game with 49 yards rushing on 13 carries (3.8 ypc) with a TD run.  Ahmad Bradshaw only could muster 22 yards rushing on 15 carries (1.5 ypc) yesterday and he also caught 2 passes for 8 yards.  WRs Mario Manningham (4 rec, 101 yards, TD) and Derek Hagan (6 rec, 70 yards) led the way in the passing game for the Giants yesterday.  The Giants finished up with 82 yards rushing on 32 carries (2.6 ypc) and they also completed 17 of 29 passes for 243 yards as they had possession of the ball for 32:20.

CB Terrell Thomas (10 tackles and 1 pass defensed) and DE Osi Umenyiora (5 tackles, 1 tackle for a loss, 2 sacks, 2 QB hits and 1 fumble recovery) led the way for the Giants’ D in this game.  Safety Kenny Phillips (fumble recovery), DE Jason Pierre-Paul (fumble recovery) and LB Keith Bulluck (interception) also made huge plays for the Giants on D in this game.  The Redskins finished up with 67 yards rushing on 20 carries (3.4 ypc) and they also completed 26 of 44 passes for 318 yards.  The Giants finished up this season with a 10-6 record which has them in 2nd place in the NFC East with no playoffs.

27-year old DE Justin Tuck has turned in another fine year for the New York Giants.  Tuck has played in 15 games for the Giants so far this year and he has 74 tackles, 9 tackles for a loss, 11 sacks, 3 passes defensed, 6 forced fumbles and 5 fumble recoveries.  Tuck has now played in 83 games for the Giants in his first six years and he has 306 tackles, 40 sacks, 16 passes defensed, 17 forced fumbles and a interception that he returned for a TD.  Tuck has been a outstanding player for the Giants in his career so far and he keeps on getting better.

The New York Giants have given up a combined 83 points the last two weekends against the Eagles & Packers, losing both games.  Now they have painted themselves into a corner as they need to beat the Redskins while having the Bears’ backups beat the Packers at Lambeau Field to get into the playoffs.  The Giants did pound the Redskins 31-7 earlier this year in New Jersey.  Since the loss to the Giants, the Redskins are 1-2 but they have only been outscored by 1 point (a combined 67-66).  Here is a look a the matchups in this game:

When the Giants have the ball:  With Eli Manning starting to melt down, I look for the Giants to try to play this game safe by handing the ball off a lot to Ahmad Bradshaw and Brandon Jacobs.  The Redskins are giving up 130.6 yards rushing per game and 4.8 yards per carry this year so the Giants should be able to control the ball and the clock in this game.  Hakeem Nicks has a broken toe and it’s possible that he won’t play tomorrow.  That means that Mario Manningham abd Kevin Boss will be the top targets for Eli Manning in the passing game.

When the Redskins have the ball:  The Redskins have been a little more balanced on offense with Rex Grossman under center.  The Giants will have to deal with power back Ryan Torain as the Skins have been running the ball a lot better as of late.  The Giants must get to Rex Grossman in this game because he forces the ball when rushed, often making big mistakes.  Santana Moss and Anthony Armstrong give him some nice targets on deep passes which are his specialty as he has a strong arm.  TE Chris Cooley handles the short stuff.

PREDICTION:  GIANTS 24, REDSKINS 20

25-year old CB Terrell Thomas has turned in a monster year for the New York Giants in 2010.  Thomas has played in 15 games for the Giants so far this year and he has 91 tackles, 1 sack, 4 tackles for a loss, 20 passes defensed, 5 interceptions, 4 forced fumbles and 1 fumble recovery.  Thomas has now played in 43 games in his first three years in the NFL and he has 221 tackles, 37 passes defensed, 2 sacks, 6 forced fumbles and a interception that he returned for a TD.  Thomas has quickly turned into one of the best cornerbacks in the NFL.