LANDOVER, Md. -- Josh Norman wanted to thank Washington Redskins fans Sunday night, but he also wanted to apologize to them after a season-ending 19-10 loss to the New York Giants.
"You don't come out and lose and like that," Norman said of the Redskins, who blew their virtual win-and-in opportunity to join the Giants in the playoffs. "That right there was just disgusting, it was despicable. ... That right there, it's not football."
The Redskins had everything to play for while the Giants, a playoff spot in the bag, had no way to improve their seeding.
But Kirk Cousins threw two costly interceptions as the Redskins desperately tried to climb out of 10-0 halftime deficit, tied the game, only to see it slip away.
Washington (8-7-1) lost two of its final three games and four of six down the stretch with a combination of sluggish starts, ill-timed mistakes and lackluster offense.
Cousins was intercepted twice in the second half by Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie, the second interception all but sealing the result.
Cousins was 22 of 35 for 287 yards with a touchdown and those 2 interceptions in what could be his final game with the Redskins after playing this season on the franchise tag.
"This isn't my first time dealing with this," said Cousins, who was sacked a season-high four times. "Tough times don't last; tough people do, right? I sound like a broken record, but I'm going to keep saying that until I retire."
Redskins players complimented the Giants (11-5) for being "the better team," which was jarring given that they were locked into the NFC's first wild card with nothing at stake.
Eli Manning played the entire game and was 17 of 27 for 180 yards as New York employed a conservative second-half approach and still came away with the victory.
Coach Ben McAdoo called it "a physical, hard-nosed football game against a hungry team on the road where we ran the ball, we stopped the run, we took care of the ball, and we took the ball away."
The Redskins considered's the result to be the team's ultimate failure with their season on the line.
"They just made more plays to win the game, and that's what good teams do," defensive end Chris Baker said. "Any time you have the situation in your hands to make it to the next level and you don't capitalize on that, it's a disappointment.
Norman and Odell Beckham Jr. added another chapter to their always contentious and ever-eventful rivalry. The Redskins cornerback, who entered tied for the most penalties in the NFL, was flagged for two more Sunday.
Norman shoved Beckham out of bounds in the second quarter and drew an unsportsmanlike-conduct penalty when slammed his face mask into the face mask of Beckham.
"It's the game," Norman said. "You can't tell referees what to say, what to do, what to call."
McAdoo said he used a "coach's decision" to remove Beckham in the third quarter after five catches for 44 yards, while keeping Manning in.
Sports on 01/02/2017