There was Albert Haynesworth and Chris Horton stuffing the Giants at the goal line.
Then there was LaRon Landry committing a personal foul penalty.
There was Fred Smoot, Andre Carter and DeAngelo Hall whiffing on tackling Mario Manningham after he caught a short pass from Eli Manning.
Then there was Carter sacking Eli Manning and forcing a fumble.
On Sunday afternoon against the New York Giants, it was one good play, one bad play for the Redskins' defense.
Time and again.
The Redskins' defense played well enough to keep the game close, but the Giants prevailed 23-17 at the Meadowlands.
Overall, the defense allowed 351 yards of offense to the Giants, including 103 yards on the ground.
The Redskins' focus was on stopping 6-4, 264-pound running back Brandon Jacobs, who had 16 rushes for 46 yards. Manning was able to get into a rhythm, though. He completed 20-of-29 passes for 256 yards, one touchdown and one interception.
The defense yielded 6-of-13 third-down conversions and the Giants controlled the clock for 13 more minutes.
London Fletcher led the Redskins' defense with 18 tackles, Chris Horton added nine tackles, Carter had a sack and a forced fumble and Hall had a second-half interception that led to a field goal.
Early on, the Redskins' proved to be stout on short yardage situations, stuffing the Giants twice.
The Giants moved to the Redskins' 11-yard line on their opening possession. Faced with 3rd-and-1, Manning pitched to Jacobs to the right. The defensive line got a strong push and Landry slipped past blockers to tackle Jacobs for no gain.
The Giants had to settle for a field goal.
While the Redskins slowed the powerful Jacobs, they had difficulty adjusting to the speed of running back Ahmad Bradshaw. He compiled 60 yards on 12 carries, an impressive 5.0 yards-per-carry average.
Bradshaw picked up 22 yards to help the Giants move across midfield. Then Jacobs picked up 15 yards, plus add on a 12-yard penalty on Landry for a late hit out of bounds.
For the second drive in a row, the Redskins' defense clamped down in the red zone.
On 4th-and-1 at the Redskins' 3-yard line, the Giants handed off to Jacobs. Albert Haynesworth clogged the middle and Chris Horton joined in on the tackle. No gain for Jacobs.
Midway through the second quarter, the defense forced the Giants into a 3rd-and-7 at the Redskins' 30-yard line.
Manning threw a pass to Manningham in the flat. Manningham fought off a tackle by Fred Smoot and then avoided a tackle by Andre Carter. DeAngelo Hall over-ran the play, clearing the right sideline for Manningham, who turned the short pass into a 30-yard touchdown reception.
Carter made up for it later in the second quarter by sacking Manning and forcing a fumble that was recovered by Lorenzo Alexander.
Late in the third quarter, the Redskins forced Manning into another turnover.
Manning was under pressure deep in his own territory and he threw an ill-advised pass across the middle of the field to Steve Smith.
Landry had tight coverage and he got a hand on the football. The ball was tipped into the air and Hall was there to pull in the interception. Hall returned the ball 18 yards to the Giants' 11-yard line.
The Redskins' offense converted a field goal after the interception, narrowing the Giants' lead to 17-10.
