Beckham’s late grab helps Giants snap streak

Associated Press

MIAMI GARDENS, Fla.

With the score tied in the fourth quarter, Odell Beckham Jr. somehow slipped 5 yards behind the secondary.

That turned out to be the winning margin for the New York Giants.

Beckham’s 84-yard touchdown reception put the Giants ahead to stay with 11 minutes to go, and they forged a three-way tie atop the NFC East by beating the Miami Dolphins 31-24 on Monday night.

New York’s Eli Manning went 27 for 31 for 337 yards and four scores. His passer rating of 151.5 was his highest since 2009.

The Giants (6-7) broke a three-game losing streak and are tied with the Redskins and Eagles for the lead in their woeful division. The Dolphins (5-8) were mathematically eliminated from the playoff race, extending their postseason drought to a franchise-record seven consecutive years.

The Dolphins topped 20 points for the first time since October, but couldn’t keep up with Beckham, who had seven catches for 166 yards and two scores.

The 100-yard game was his sixth in a row, a Giants record.

With the score 24-all, Beckham took advantage of broken coverage to score the go-ahead touchdown. Jamar Taylor and seldom-used safety Shamiel Gary were the closest defenders, but Manning hit Beckham in stride at midfield and he sprinted to the end zone for his 12th touchdown this year.

Beckham outplayed his close friend and former LSU teammate, Miami’s Jarvis Landry, who made 11 catches for 99 yards but was flagged for a costly personal foul penalty with his team trailing in the fourth quarter.

Beckham made a 45-yard reception to set up a touchdown and had a 5-yard scoring catch. The latter pass was initially ruled incomplete because Beckham was out of bounds, but the decision was overturned by a replay review that made the score 24-all.

His final catch, a diving grab on third down at midfield, sealed the victory with less than two minutes left.

Manning led a touchdown drive in the final two minutes of the first half covering 80 yards, including 45 on a long pass to Beckham, to make it 17-all.