DETROIT - The Detroit Lions have been eliminated from the playoff picture with another late-season collapse that might also cost coach Jim Schwartz his job. Sure, Josh Browns 45-yard field goal on the third drive of overtime lifted the New York Giants to a 23-20 win over Detroit on Sunday. But the Lions (7-8) dropped themselves out of the NFC North race by losing five of their last six games, blowing fourth-quarter leads in each setback. "We put ourselves in a bad, bad situation," linebacker Stephen Tulloch said. "Unfortunately, we cant dig ourselves out of it now." Schwartzs fate might have been sealed with the latest loss, his ninth straight in December or January. "Speculation isnt my job," he said. "Coaching is enough of a job for me." The embattled coach chose to play for overtime by running out the clock with 23 seconds and two timeouts left from the Detroit 25. When the crowd reacted with a chorus of boos, Schwartz turned his head toward the stands and angrily shouted something. Schwartz insisted he wasnt responding to the fans. "Thats a tough situation when your players are getting booed," he said. "You want to keep them fired up and thats what I was trying to do." Detroit needed some help to stay in post-season contention and got it when Pittsburgh won at Green Bay. The Packers loss turned out to be moot because the lowly Lions fell to put them out of the playoffs for the 13th time in 14 years. The Giants (6-9) overcame Eli Mannings interception late in regulation and Andre Browns fumble on the opening possession in overtime to win for the second time in five games. With nothing to lose, New York went on fourth-and-7 from the Lions 42 and Manning connected with Jerrel Jernigan on a 15-yard pass to set up the winning kick. Schwartz didnt call a timeout that mightve led to a video review that couldve potentially overturned the low reception. "I guess he made a catch," Manning said. "They called it a catch." To avoid a potential review, the Giants quickly snapped the ball and gave tight end Bear Pascoe his first NFL rushing attempt. "Had to make a few adjustments there," Manning recalled. Manning was 23 of 42 for 256 yards with a TD pass to Jernigan — his first career score — and an NFL-high 26th interception. Matthew Stafford was worse: 25 of 42 for 222 yards and two interceptions, the second was returned by Will Hill for a TD that tied it at 20 with 4:57 left in the lacklustre game. Stafford threw high and wide of 6-foot-7 tight end Joseph Fauria, who had to leap just to get his hands on the errant pass. "We have had back-to-back heartbreakers at home with games decided by field goals," said Stafford, who was also lamenting last Monday nights loss to Baltimore on Justin Tuckers 61-yard kick in the final minute. Calvin Johnson, questionable for the game because of an injured right knee, wasnt the targeted receiver once after making three catches for 43 yards in the first half. "His knee was bothering him, and his ankle was a problem," Schwartz said. "We were trying to use him in the red zone and on third downs, but he wasnt close to 100 per cent." Staffords first interception and Reggie Bushs career-high fourth fumble in the first half let the offensively challenged Giants take a 13-3 lead at halftime. Mannings 20-yard pass to Jernigan gave the Giants a 10-3 lead after Bushs fumble. Jernigan, a third-year receiver, took advantage of more playing time with Victor Cruz out after having left knee surgery Thursday. Detroit cornerback Bill Bentley was beaten by Jernigan on the play and hit by safety Louis Delmas, who gave his teammate a concussion. Browns season-long 52-yard field goal put New York ahead by double digits with 9 seconds left in the half. The kick came two snaps after Lions safety Don Carey got a delay-of-game penalty. Detroits Jeremy Ross returned the first punt of the second half 50 yards to set up a 1-yard TD run by Joique Bell to make it 13-10. Lions defensive tackle Nick Fairley sacked Manning in the end zone to pull the Lions within a point late in the third quarter. Detroit went ahead for the first time on the ensuing possession. Rookie running back Theo Riddick ran for a 2-yard TD and Fauria caught a pass for a 2-point conversion to give the Lions a 20-13 lead. The Lions, though, blew it — and their chance to possibly win their first division title since 1993. NOTES: Schwartzs skid in December and January is at least twice as long as any other active streak and is the leagues longest since Herm Edwards (from 2007-08) and Jim Haslett (from 2005-08) both lost nine in a row during those months. ... 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The 20-year-old Blaney wont be the only kid pushing a podium finish.TORONTO – When Maple Leafs head coach Randy Carlyle first coached James van Riemsdyk last season, he was met initially with a hardheadedness that reminded him of someone very familiar. "Maybe I looked in the mirror," Carlyle said, chuckling as he walked off. Blossoming into something special for the Leafs, van Riemsdyk set a new career-high Tuesday night with his 41st point this season, also equaling a career mark with his 21st goal of the year, the game-winner in a 3-2 edging of the Lightning. All the 24-year-old desired when he was traded from Philadelphia to Toronto in the summer of 2012 was an opportunity to prove himself on a grander stage and, with that opportunity, he has most certainly flourished. In addition to goals and points, van Riemsdyk has also set new career-highs in power-play goals (8), shots (186), shorthanded goals (1) and power play points (14), already having matched a career-high in assists with 20 on the season – all this in just 53 games. He is also fetching nearly 21 minutes per game – by far the highest of a five-year career – teaming with Phil Kessel and Tyler Bozak on whats become an offensively dominant top line. "That was the key for me is the opportunity," said van Riemsdyk, who feigned no surprise when he was traded for Luke Schenn in a long-rumoured deal on June 23, 2012. "I was always confident in myself as far I think I proved it in Philly. I showed when I had the opportunity to play a lot, play in those key situations, that I was able to be a productive player. Ive been able to get more of those opportunities since coming here. "For me personally, I think it was good to start somewhere else, go to a place where I was going to get a chance to show what I can do." Before being dealt, van Riemsdyk was maybe most known for a seven-goal explosion in the 2011 playoffs as a member of the Flyers, a foreshadowing in many ways of what was coming down the line. Last spring, during his first campaign with the Leafs, he offered another tantalizing glimpse of where his career might be headed in the very near future, a force with seven points during a memorable seven-game first round series with Boston. "I think JVR has picked up a lot of where he was in the playoffs last year," Carlyle said prior to Tuesdays game, which snapped a mini two-game slide for the Leafs. "He seemed to be able to take that next step. Hes more confident." "I just want to try to keep getting better and better every single year," van Riemsdyk said. "Ive been given an opportunity here to play in some key situations and play some big minutes. Im definitely happy about that." Five Points 1. More van Riemsdyk Carlyle indicated that van Riemsdyk often proved stubborn early in his Toronto tenure, but with time has grown more receptive to the prodding of the coaching staff. "He used to be a guy yeah, but [or] but if," Carlyle said of van Riemsdyks response to coaching. "But hes not that [anymore]. Now hes more receptive to [it] … Theres a difference between coaching and criticism. Sometimes they all become the same to players. Thats the difficult part is when to use it, when not to use it as a coach." It was only days into the 2013 campaign that Carlyle first publicly prodded van Riemsdyk. "Hes got to go into the dirty areas a little bit more and thats one of the things were going to ask of him," said Carlyle before an early season game against Pittsburgh. "Hes a big man, who can go to the front of the net. Hes got soft hands around the net. We want to see him drive that puck to that area..." Improvements in those areas have notably helped the New Jersey native blossom into an offensive force, specifically his willingness to camp out in the difficult areas around the net. 2. Shouldering a Heavy Burden With 40 stops on Tuesday, Jonathan Bernier improved to 7-1-2 this season when facing 40 or more shots this season, an impressive mark under the strain of a heavy workload. Bernier made a number of key saves throughout the evening, but none more brilliant than a stop on Martin St. Louis with just over three minutes to go in regulation. Sliding to his left, in rhythm with a Hedman cross-ice feed, the 25-year-old used his left pad to turn aside the surefire game-tying goal. "Great save, game-saving save," Kadri said. "We almost expect him to make those type of saves now because hes done it so often. Hes a great goaltender, uup with the best, and he definitely showed it there.dddddddddddd" 3. Kadri Brushes Off Speculation Nazem Kadri scored for the fifth and sixth time in the past four games against Ben Bishop, the NHLs save percentage leader and six-foot-seven Tampa netminder. The first saw the 23-year-old employ six-foot-six Lightning defender Victor Hedman as a screen in transition, the second a sure Highlight of the Night candidate that saw Kadri dance around Hedman before slipping a backhand beyond the grasp of Bishop. Boasting 35 points on the year, Kadri has quickly quieted trade speculation that always seems to bubble in Toronto. "Im just ignoring that," he said. "I dont think I use it as motivation or as a concern – it doesnt discourage me. I just try and focus on what I have to do and what I can bring to the team. I know I can help this team, its just a matter of when." "The thing about him is he doesnt let anything bother him," van Riemsdyk added of Kadri, who is up to 14 goals this season. "Its definitely impressive to see. I think hes probably used to it maybe growing up in the spotlight here." 4. Adjustments for Kadri Sliding out from a slump that lingered for the better part of a month, Kadri has now posted points in six of the past seven games. "Our request [for him] is to play more north-south versus east-west, specifically through the neutral ice," said Carlyle. "When hes not playing well you see him, he gets caught from behind on the back-side pressure. And when hes playing well, he seems to be able to create space in that area." Carlyle also observed that Kadri was playing more physically in recent weeks, adding that his acumen in the faceoff circle had improved. A real source of concern earlier in the year – he was amongst the worst in the league – Kadri has won just under 50 per cent in the past 10 games, victorious on 10 of 16 draws against the Lightning. 5. Gleason Effect Tim Gleason has been paired with Cody Franson for all but two of his 12 games with the Leafs and hes proven a stabilizing force in that span. "Hes a very solid, aggressive, and physical style player," Franson said of Gleason. "For me, hes very easy to read off of. I know hes going in there to try to be aggressive as the first guy. When you have guys like that where you dont have to think too much, it makes it easier. You can react quicker and it makes the plays a little easier to read." Franson, who leads the Toronto defence with 25 points, has benefited from the meat and potatoes style of the longtime Hurricane defender, similar in some ways to the effect Mark Fraser had on the 26-year-old last season. "Mark would always be aggressive trying to get hits and staple guys to the wall and allow our defensive zone coverage to take place," Franson said. "Gleas is the same way. He has a physical mindset and goes in there and tries to get people in tough positions to make plays and allow us to break out of the zone a little easier." Gleason battled through a difficult night against the Lightning. The 30-year-old blocked a shot in one uncomfortable area, received a pass in the face and was then hammered into the end-boards in the final two minutes by Teddy Purcell. He was forced to leave the game with a shoulder injury, one that Carlyle didnt believe to be serious. Stats Pack 10-5-2 – Leafs record against the Atlantic division. 7-1-2 – Record for Jonathan Bernier this season when facing 40 shots or more. 2 – Multi-goal games for Nazem Kadri this season. 41 – Points for James van Riemsdyk this season, a new career-high. 49.7% - Success rate for Kadri on the draw in the past 10 games. 7 – Phil Kessel shot attempts that were blocked by the Lightning. 75% - Leafs success rate on defensive zone faceoffs against Tampa. 21-6-3 – Leafs record this season when scoring first. Special Teams Capsule PP: 0-3Season: 22% (4th) PK: 3-3Season: 77.1% (29th) Quote of the Night "They thought Ive been playing excellent over this last nine, 10-game stretch. Kudos to them for sticking with me. I know theyre a patient bunch as well and they understand what I can bring to the team. Ive been very coachable and theyve given me some great pointers that Ive listened to and just tried to get better." -Nazem Kadri on the patience of the Toronto coaching staff. 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