Barber ‘B’ Lines It to Record

Tiki Barber had no worries about playing behind a patchwork offensive line.

Barber ran for a team-record 220 yards in 29 carries and scored two touchdowns, helping the New York Giants defeat the Kansas City Chiefs, 27-17, Saturday. If the Giants (10-4) beat Washington next week, they will clinch the NFC East.

Despite the banged-up line, Barber slithered through the Chief defense, breaking one tackle after another to eclipse the team’s previous game rushing mark of 218 yards, set by Gene Roberts against the Chicago Cardinals in 1950.

How broken down was the Giants’ line? Tackles Luke Petitgout (back) and Kareem McKenzie (hamstring) were out, and Rich Seubert was starting his first game at guard since breaking a leg in October 2003. Guard David Diehl moved to one tackle spot, and veteran backup Bob Whitfield filled the other.

“This is an offensive line we knew coming in was going to be effective for us,” Barber said. “That was one of the things we talked about many months ago, that we had great depth.”

But center Shaun O’Hara was surprised with how well the group played.

“We didn’t expect this going into the game, but that is just a tribute to the guys preparing and being ready,” O’Hara said.

Kansas City (8-6) saw its wild-card chances diminish.

Larry Johnson tried to keep the Chiefs in the game, finishing with 167 yards rushing and two touchdowns. He and Barber extended their 100-yard-game streaks -- Johnson to a club-record seven and Barber to five. Barber has 1,577 yards rushing, surpassing his team season rushing mark of 1,518 set last year.

Although both backs shared the spotlight in the game, it was shoddy tackling that doomed the Chiefs. On Barber’s 41-yard touchdown run in the second quarter, at least five Chiefs missed tackles as he danced down the left sideline.

“They broke tackles. They ran all over us,” defensive end Jared Allen said. “When you’re not tackling, that’s what happens. He’s powerful. He runs good. He’s explosive, but there were so many times we had him stopped.”

Then early in the third quarter, safety Sammy Knight had both arms around receiver Amani Toomer before letting him slip away for a 31-yard score that gave the Giants a 20-10 lead. The Chiefs unsuccessfully challenged the play, saying Toomer’s knee touched the ground when he was hit by Knight.

Johnson scored on a one-yard run to get the Chiefs to 20-17. But Barber answered with a 20-yard scoring run to give the Giants some breathing room, a luxury they haven’t always had this season: Five of their games have been decided in the last two minutes or in overtime.

Barber said he knew he was close to the record when he went out for the Giants’ final series.

“Our line took great pride in it,” he said. “We were packed up in the box for the first couple of runs and then we spread out and that allowed me to get it. It’s something I’m very proud of, and I think it’s something that we’ll remember for a long time.”

New York won despite another shaky performance from quarterback Eli Manning, who was 17 for 32 for 186 yards, one touchdown and one interception. Kansas City’s Trent Green was 15 for 28 for 176 yards and an interception.

“It’s very frustrating. Any time you can control your own destiny, you want to have it in your hands,” Green said. “Now we put ourselves in a situation where we have to sit back and watch other teams. Now we don’t control things. If we don’t care of business next week, it doesn’t matter either way.”