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EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. -- While his sack total isnt what it used to be, there is little doubt that defensive end Jason Pierre-Paul is back to being a force on the New York Giants defense.Disagree?Just think back to a couple of nights ago and the Giants 21-20 win over the Cincinnati Bengals on Monday night.Pierre-Paul had five tackles, batted down two passes and had two quarterback hurries. He was on the field for 57 of the Bengals 58 snaps.For the season, the 27-year-old has 38 tackles, 1+ sacks, three tackles for losses, a team-high 11 quarterback hurries and seven passes defended, one shy of his career high in 2010, his rookie season.There is also little talk these days about the right hand that Pierre-Paul mangled in a fireworks accident on July 4, 2015. He lost his right index finger and part of his thumb. His middle finger is mushroomed at the tip and his ring finger is swollen.He has overcome it though, having a full year to prepare for this season. He played the final eight games last season but never looked comfortable.I think that when you play the New York Giants defense, you have to game plan against me and just knowing that guys are game planning against me, it is just a wonderful feeling because if they dont, bad things are going to happen, Pierre-Paul said Thursday. Bad things are going to happen, regardless, but it just makes me feel good and I always had that confidence of just playing football no matter what.Even with my hand injury, I still had that mentality, he added. You could have taken the whole thing and I would have been out there with a nub just doing it. That is just the mentality that I have got, man. That is basically it.Not only is Pierre-Paul playing well, he is excited. The Giants (6-3) have won four in a row and are in position to challenge for their first trip to the playoffs since 2011.Wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr., who got a chance to play safety on a last-second heave by the Bengals at the end of the first half, bluntly said the Giants have a defense capable to taking the Giants to the Super Bowl.Pierre-Paul didnt hesitate to agree.Lets slow down for a minute, he added. Like I said, our job this year is to just get in the playoffs, take it one game at a time and hopefully at the end of this run in the regular season we will be in the playoffs. That is the whole goal here.Fellow defensive end Olivier Vernon said he spoke with Pierre-Paul before signing with the Giants as a free agent and having `JPP tell him he had something to prove this season.Thats one hell of a teammate right there, Vernon said. Just as far as his preparation. He never complains about anything despite everything hes had to battle. He goes out there and makes plays. All you could do is respect that. He comes in the building and works hard. He works hard in practice each and every day.Defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo and linebacker Keenan Robinson both said that opponents have to account for Pierre-Paul, who been on the field for 634 of the 660 plays that the defense has been on the field. Thats 96 percent.I think that people feel him, Spagnuolo said of the Giants opponents. Thats a good thing for us. When you have to worry about one guy, you can do some other things. I think hes steadily gotten more comfortable. We all realize, as you get further and further into the season, it gets really important. We want it to continue to be important.Pierre-Paul said he is just playing football.You look on film and I am all over the field, man, Pierre-Paul said. That is something that you cant coach. You have to have a heart and nobody can give me that. I guarantee you that if you pop in the film, you will see me running to the ball more than any player. I feel that as long as I can do that, I am good.Game notesWR Victor Cruz practiced on a limited basis and said he plans on playing on Sunday. He missed Monday night with an ankle injury. ... RB Orleans Darkwa (lower leg), G Justin Pugh (knee) and G Brett Jones (calf) did not practice. WR-return man Dwayne Harris (toe) and OL Adam Gettis (calf) were limited like Cruz. ... OL Shane McDermott was re-signed to the practice squad. He was let go on Sept. 21. ... The practice squad contract of WR DaRon Brown was terminated.---For more NFL coverage: http://www.pro32.ap.org and http://www.twitter.com/AP-NFL.Steve Young Jersey .C. - The Carolina Hurricanes have placed backup goalie Anton Khudobin on injured reserve with an unspecified lower-body injury. Ronnie Lott Jersey .ca looks back at the stories and moments that made the year memorable. http://www.cheap49ersjerseysauthentic.com/ . Just as Montreal was settling into the first full working week of a new year, the Impact announced the appointment of their new head coach. 49ers Jerseys Authentic China . Q: Team Canada announces their Olympic roster three weeks from today. Who is general manager Steve Yzerman watching? LeBrun: Over the last 48 hours, hes taken in the home-and-home between the Dallas Stars and Colorado Avalanche with Jamie Benn and Matt Duchene being the obvious targets. Patrick Willis Jersey . -- The Portland Timbers and Real Salt Lake played to a 0-0 tie Saturday night that left the top of the Western Conference standings unchanged.DAVIE, Fla. -- The Miami Dolphins returned to South Florida from their latest win at 5 a.m. Sunday and were back at work a few hours later, smiling and chatty and betraying no signs of a short nights sleep.Theyre too busy savoring success.Winning is fun, guard Jermon Bushrod said. Thats what we get paid to do. You want to be in meaningful games in December, and you just want to win, because winning feels real good.Its a new sensation in these parts, with the Dolphins (9-5) now assured of their first winning season since 2008 following Saturday nights 34-13 drubbing of the New York Jets .But the Dolphins are focused on a more ambitious achievement -- making the playoffs. They can end a seven-season playoff drought by sweeping their final two regular-season games, and could even clinch next weekend.The more you win, the more pressure the next game is, Bushrod said. Saturday was a big game for us, but it wont be the biggest. I dont want that to be the biggest game we play. I want us to keep finding a way to win, because thats what good teams do.With eight victories in the past nine games, the Dolphins are clearly better than in recent years, and the weeks to come will help determine how good they are. They play Saturday at Buffalo and then conclude the regular season Jan. 1 against New England.Miami regained control of its fate Sunday when Denver lost to New England . The Dolphins moved ahead of the Broncos (8-6) in the race for the final AFC wild-card spot, and will clinch a berth next weekend if they win and Denver loses at Kansas City.Nobody preaches one week at a time more than first-year coach Adam Gase, and when asked if he allows himself even a moment to be excited about his teams success, he stuck with a response so familiar he considered it not even worth quoting.I think you know what my answer is going to be, Gase said. Its wasting paper and the internet. But that has been a great thing our players have embraced: Focus on what were doing right now.We pllay until somebody tells us not to.dddddddddddd We just need to stick with that mantra.The Jets sure couldnt stop them. The Dolphins completed their first sweep of their division rivals since 2009 as Matt Moore threw a career-high four touchdown passes in his first start since 2011.I think I got a good pulse of the guys and how they were feeling, and even if I didnt, I would probably fake it, Moore said. But I felt really good, and I knew the guys felt good.They looked good, too. Kenny Stills had a reception covering at least 50 yards for the third time this year. Jarvis Landry turned a short pass into a 66-yard touchdown and surpassed 1,000 yards for the season, and Jay Ajayi became a 1,000-yard rusher.On defense, Cameron Wake had a strip sack and his first career interception, and Tony Lippett added two interceptions, while Walt Aikens scored on special teams for the second week in a row.With quarterback Ryan Tannehill sidelined by a knee injury, the Dolphins found a way to compensate, as theyve done with season-ending injuries to their best defensive back (Reshad Jones) and best offensive lineman (Mike Pouncey).Once again, somebody goes down, and everybody rallies and steps up their game, Gase said. You dont hear our guys putting their head down and being upset. Its that rallying cry of next man up.As a reward, most of the Dolphins have a shot at the first playoff game of their career.This is an amazing feeling to be in the position that we are in, Landry said. I cant remember in past years how many Dolphins teams were above .500 at this point in the year. So for us to be where we are is a testament to the hard work weve put in.---For more NFL coverage: www.pro32.ap.org and http://twitter.com/AP-NFL---Follow Steven Wine on Twitter: http://twitter.com/Steve-Wine . His work can be found at http://bigstory.ap.org/content/steven-wineCheap Jerseys[ollow Steven Wine on Twitter: [url]http://twitter.