The Redskins became a five-loss team yesterday, just like the Eagles. Which doesn't necessarily mean the Eagles inched closer to one of the two precious wildcard slots; rather, the Redskins just slid farther backward toward the Eagles' misery.

"We're not out of the playoffs," said running back Clinton Portis, who started the day the top rusher in the league. He left the game twice with injuries and finished with 22 yards on 11 carries. "There's a long road ahead."

Actually, it's a four-game road. After a third home loss in four games overall, to an undermanned, underwhelming Giants club, it stamped the Redskins as mediocre as, well, the Birds.

The sidelight of yesterday's game - Plaxico Burress' self-inflicted gunshot wound in his right thigh at a Manhattan nightclub Friday, and the accompanying criminal implications - could have reverberating fallout. Burress was scheduled to sit out yesterday's game anyway, with a balky right hamstring.

The fallout could be significant, especially since middle linebacker Antonio Pierce also has been questioned by NFL security. He reportedly was present at the nightclub, and police sources told the New York Daily News he tried to hide the gun.

Pierce played unremarkably but not distractedly. Ditto his teammates.

"Distractions gave us a win, 23-7," he said with defiance.

If the sidelight cast a shadow, the spotlight of the game was the lack of heart and efficiency with which the Redskins played, in a game that could have ended their playoff hopes. Before the game, they inducted Sean Taylor into their Ring of Fame, a stirring tribute to the 24-year-old safety who was killed in his home a year ago.

They did his fierce memory no justice. It was an opportunity missed.

Because, after a spirited opening 13 minutes gave New York a 10-0 lead, the Giants were basically checking their watches, hoping to get out of the chilling, steady rain as soon as possible.

"We left some points out there," coach Tom Coughlin admitted.

Which leaves the Eagles, and their constituency, to wonder, for weeks, what if . . .

* The Eagles could have gained 1 yard late in the fourth quarter against the Giants on Nov. 9? Remember Brian Westbrook's two midfield miscarriages?

* The Eagles could have gained 1 yard late in the fourth quarter in Chicago on Sept. 28? It was Tony Hunt, then Correll Buckhalter twice, since Westbrook was out and quarterback Donovan McNabb had a sore chest.

* McNabb hadn't needed an old-fashioned punitive benching to recover his mojo? McNabb's interpretation of NFL overtime rules Nov. 16 in one-win Cincinnati will live in infamy, but don't discount that three-interception, Bad Donovan performance that preceded the notorious admission of his rulebook ignorance.

Any one of those what-ifs would mean that the Eagles would enter the Meadowlands on Sunday with more than a prayer of making the playoffs.

The Eagles play the Redskins again, in 3 weeks. They face the 8-4 Cowboys, too, on the final day of the season.

If they could win against the Giants in 6 days, they would be sitting prettier. True, the absurdly deep and steady Giants are 11-1, but they are beaten up, bound to be hounded by their pistolero's hijinx this week, and they might be looking ahead to their Sunday night date in Dallas in 2 weeks.

Even yesterday the Giants were undermanned and ripe. They played without tackle Fred Robbins (shoulder), the fulcrum of their suffocating defense.

They didn't have fiery running back Ahmad Bradshaw (neck), which left them with only earth and wind with which to pound the 'Skins. After being silenced in the first half by the No. 4 rushing defense in the conference, Brandon Jacobs, on a sore left knee, collected an earthy 71 rushing yards on 21 carries, and Derrick Ward managed a breezy 30 on 10 runs.

The 'Skins were nearly shut out. They resorted to trickery to score, a 29-yard reverse by receiver Devin Thomas. That had a chance to happen thanks to a dubious illegal-hands-to-the-face penalty on the preceding play, which nullified a Giants interception.

"That should've been nothing," Jacobs said.

Well, lots of things should've happened this season.

A lot of places. *