EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. (AP) – The last time Brandon Short ran into Chad Pennington, the Giants and Jets were playing a preseason game hyped up because of high hopes for both New York teams.

Short tackled Pennington from behind and the quarterback landed hard on his left wrist, shattering it – and in some ways the Jets’ season.

The Giants escaped the game without any major injuries. They’ve just stumbled over their own feet repeatedly in the regular season, giving away two games they had in hand until the final minutes.

The problems have left the Jets (2-5) and Giants (3-4) facing must-win situations heading into what has become a Survival Bowl of sorts on Sunday at Giants Stadium, or the Meadowlands, as the Jets want it to be known.

“This is frustrating, because it’s our fault, but it’s a positive, because we can fix it,” Pennington said. “It drives you crazy, but when you come to work, you know you can fix it.”

For the most part, both teams have struggled scoring. The Jets’ five losses have been by a combined 39 points. The Giants’ four losses have been by a combined 31 points, including a three-point overtime loss to Dallas and a four-point defeat to Philadelphia that were the result of late special teams blunders.

Both teams will be coming into only the 10th regular-season meeting between the metropolitan area rivals with renewed hope.

Pennington returned for the first time since his injury, replacing Vinny Testaverde in the second quarter of a 24-17 loss to the Eagles in Philadelphia last Sunday. While he looked rusty hitting 14 of 24 passes for 154 yards, he is the guy who makes the Jets go.

“I’m an optimist and I look at 17 teams below .500,” Jets coach Herm Edwards said. “Some teams are going to dig themselves out of the hole. Why not us?”

The Giants feel the same way after ending a three-game losing streak with a 29-17 win over Minnesota that knocked the Vikings from the undefeated ranks.

The defense has played well the last three games, and it has been respectable for the last four. The offense showed its first signs of life last week as Kerry Collins passed for 375 yards and New York had 450 yards in total offense.

“We realize that it is very important to build on this and not just let it go by the wayside and get too happy about it,” said Giants defensive end Michael Strahan.

Besides the oddity of having co-tenants playing on the same field, the game should feature a number of interesting matchups.

The Jets lead the league with 26 sacks. While defensive end John Abraham is out with a groin injury, the other end, Shaun Ellis, leads the league with nine sacks. He’ll go against Giants OT Ian Allen, who just returned to the lineup after being benched following the opening game.

Jets linebacker Victor Hobson is expected to start for the injured Mo Lewis at strong side linebacker. The Giants might try to exploit that with passes to tight end Jeremy Shockey.

While the Giants have thrown more passes than any team in the league, they will be going against a run defense giving up an average of 158.9 yards, worst in the NFL. Expect to see Tiki Barber with the ball.

Curtis Martin had his first 100-yard rushing game last week, but he will be going against a defense that has not allowed an opponent to rush for 100 yards in 13 straight games.

“At the end of the season, no one is going to remember that this week was Jets-Giants,” Short said. “All they care about is wins and losses. We have to go out and win this football game. We need to win. The Jets feel the same thing.”

Pennington agreed.

“I don’t think they ruined our first six games, we did that as a team,” said Pennington, who still wears a brace and glove on his wrist. “They can definitely make our challenge much harder if they ruin it on Sunday.”

AP-ES-10-30-03 1757EST