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Giants Over Redskins, 36-0
Barber rushes for career-high 204 yards as defense hands Gibbs first regular season shutout ever.
By Michael Eisen, Giants.com

October 30, 2005

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. - Wellington Mara had to be smiling.

After enduring a wrenching and emotional week in which Mara, the Giants' patriarch, passed away, and two days after attending his funeral, the Giants put one on of their most dominant performances in recent memory. They crushed the Washington Redskins, 36-0, in Giants Stadium.

"It was pretty special for us, it really was," Mara said. "I never in my wildest dreams expected them to pitch a shutout; I just wish he could have been there to see it.

"I think he would have been pretty pleased, to be honest with you. He would have had a big smile on his face and he would have been pretty pleased."

This was, after all, Wellington Mara's kind of game. The Giants won with a dominating defense and overpowering rushing attack. Washington gained only 125 total yards (38 rushing) and picked up just seven first downs. The Redskins held the ball for only 20:39 and did not snap the ball in Giants territory until the final play of the third quarter. The Giants forced four turnovers, three on defense and one on special teams.

"That was the second-ranked offense coming into the game and going into the fourth quarter they had less than 100 yards," said linebacker Antonio Pierce, the former Redskin who led the Giants with 11 tackles and an interception. "The goose egg topped off everything. Those guys were rocking and rolling. We stopped all the big plays. I think they might have had one play for over 20 yards (actually, two). Besides that, guys were flying around and when you fly around on defense, you make turnovers happen."

Offensively, the Giants rushed for 262 yards, including a career-high 206 by Tiki Barber, the second-highest total in franchise history. Barber and Jeremy Shockey, the two players who visited Wellington Mara's home the day before he passed away, scored touchdowns, as did rookie Brandon Jacobs. Jay Feely kicked five field goals in six attempts, missing only a 51-yarder.

"It was very fitting," coach Tom Coughlin said. "Mr. Mara loved a great defense and he loved to run the ball."

"(The way the game was won), that's exactly how he would have preferred it," John Mara said of his father. "If he said it once, he said it a hundred times, 'Run the ball, run the ball.' That was always his mantra when he came to the stadium later in the year, so he would have enjoyed this very much."

Although the players were able to focus on the task at hand, Wellington Mara was very much on their minds today.

"I think everybody responded great," said defensive end Michael Strahan. "We didn't use it as an excuse. We realized that one thing Mr. Mara would want would be for us to come out and play well and win. We definitely did that for him. The family had a tough few months dealing with the situation. As players, you can only hope to go out here and play your best and give everything you have. Mr. Mara is definitely an inspiration and a motivation for us."

"I think there was emotion all week, in particular on the field today," Barber said. "It's hard to figure out what you're going to do or how you're going to react in a situation like we experienced this week, but I think we did what Mr. Mara would have wanted us to do, which is carry on, play the game to the best of our abilities, and go beat a big rival in the Redskins, and go get first place in our division. I think everything worked out the way it should be."

The Giants improved to 5-2, while the Redskins' fell to 4-3. Coupled with Philadelphia's loss at Denver, the Giants moved into sole possession of first place in the NFC East.

It was the Giants' biggest regular-season victory since a 44-7 rout of Phoenix on Dec. 4, 1988. It was their most one-sided shutout victory since they crushed the Redskins, 53-0, on Nov. 5, 1961. The shutout was the Giants' first since a 41-0 victory over Minnesota in the 2000 NFC Championship Game (Jan 14, 2001) and their first in the regular season since 20-0 triumph against Philadelphia on Nov. 22, 1998.

Washington coach Joe Gibbs was shutout for the first time in 207 regular season games as an NFL head coach. The only other time he was shutout was a 17-0 loss to the Giants in the 1986 NFC Championship Game (Jan. 11, 1987).

The most touching moment of the afternoon occurred when Barber scored the game's final points on a four-yard run with 1:07 remaining in the third quarter. Barber immediately ran over to the sideline and presented the ball to Tim McDonnell, one of Wellington Mara's 40 grandchildren.

"I went right over to him and said, 'This one's for you,'" Barber said. 'This is for your grandpa.' It meant a lot to me because I have a great relationship with Tim McDonnell, especially given how great he was to me when I went up to see Mr. Mara on Monday. It was appropriate for me."

Barber's touchdown helped make the fourth quarter inconsequential. The Giants ran 14 plays, all of them on the ground. The only suspense was whether the Redskins would score. They had a first-and-goal at the four, but Patrick Ramsey's fourth-down pass to Robert Royal was incomplete. Washington coach Joe Gibbs challenged the ruling, but the call was upheld.

Feely's 44-yard field with 4:04 remaining in the third period had increased the Giants' advantage to 29-0. The score was set up by Eli Manning's 26-yard pass to Amani Toomer.

The Giants doubled their lead by converting three Redskins turnovers into 13 points in a span of 4:07 covering the second and third quarters.

The surge began with the Giants leading, 13-0. On second-and-15 from the Washington 22-yard line, Mark Brunell (11 for 28 for 65 yards) completed a pass to Santana Moss for a four-yard gain. But Moss was stripped of the ball by rookie cornerback Corey Webster. It was recovered by Kendrick Clancy at the Washington 27.

The Giants picked up a first down, but stalled at the 15, and Feely came on to kick a 33-yard field goal for a 16-0 lead.

Moments later, the Giants again took away the ball. On Washington's third play from scrimmage, Brunell's pass for David Patten was intercepted by Pierce, who played his first four NFL seasons for the Redskins. Pierce returned the ball 17 yards to the Washington 29.

A penalty pushed the Giants back 10 yards, but Barber quickly picked up 14 on a run off left tackle. But two plays later, Jacobs was stopped for no gain on third-and-two, and Feely came on to kick 39-yard field goal with two seconds remaining in the half.

The Giants' 19-0 halftime lead was their largest after two periods since Oct. 31, 2004, when they held a 20-0 advantage at Minnesota. That was also the last time the Giants did not allow a point in the first half.

After a moving video tribute to Wellington Mara was shown at halftime, the teams returned to the field with the Redskins still in a giving mode.

Ladell Betts fielded the second-half kickoff two yards deep and ran 25 yards to the Washington 23. He was hit there by Reggie Torbor and fumbled. The ball was recovered by Willie Ponder at the 23.

Once again, a 10-yard penalty pushed the Giants back. And again it was Barber who bailed them out, running 18 yards around left end to the 15-yard line. Derrick Ward then picked up a first down at the 10. On the next play, Manning threw a pass to the right side for Shockey, who caught the ball at the three-yard line and bulled his way into the end zone for the touchdown that made it 26-0.

The Giants took a 6-0 lead on Feely's first two field goals in the opening quarter.

On the first play of the game, Barber took a pitch and ran around left end for 57 yards to the Redskins' 16-yard line. But Manning was sacked for an 11-yard loss on third down from the seven, and Feely came on to kick a 39-yard field goal.

Late in the quarter, the Giants moved from their own 43 to the Washington 31 before Feely kicked a 50-yard field goal, his third this season from at least 50 yards.

Early in the second period, Barber's 59-yard run - also down the left side - gave the Giants a first down at the Washington one-yard line. After Jacobs lost two yards, he forced his way into the end zone from three yards out for a 13-0 Giants lead.

When the rout was finished, John Mara spoke about how the players had responded to a trying week for everyone connected with the Giants.

"I'm pretty proud that they responded the way they did," Mara said. "I was very touched the way they all attended the funeral and the emotion that they showed and the words that a lot of them spoke to me afterwards. I was pretty touched by that, my whole family was. So yes, we are pretty proud of them."