EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. - The New York Giants got the full Jameis Winston experience Sunday at MetLife Stadium and lived to tell the tale. With cornerback Deonte Banks' walk-off pick-six sealing it, New York escaped its game against the Arizona Cardinals with a 36-24 win, after Winston threw for 250 yards, three touchdowns and a pair of interceptions in what turned out to be a signature Winston outing. The Giants are now 3-1, and Winston is 2-0 as the Giants' starter, but whether he has played well enough to quiet chatter about being replaced is another matter. The Giants traded for 2024 first-round pick J.J. McCarthy this week, and while the 23-year-old quarterback still needs time to learn a new offensive scheme, Winston's roller coaster style may not jibe well with coach John Harbaugh and could leave the door open for McCarthy. Regardless of what happens at the quarterback spot, with the Eagles' loss to the Rams on Sunday, the Giants are now in sole possession of first place in the NFC East with a division game (at Washington) on tap for next week. "It's an opportunity. The idea is to get the lead and extend the lead," Harbaugh said after the game. "We're in good position, but it's only four games in. We can play so much better, and that's what we'll be chasing." For the Cardinals, Sunday's defeat came in heartbreaking fashion. In the final two minutes, quarterback Jacoby Brissett marched the Arizona offense down to New York's 4-yard line and had four chances to score with the Cardinals trailing by six. However, each of his first three passes fell incomplete and his fourth was intercepted by Banks, ending the game. The loss sinks the Cardinals to 1-3, a tough start in what might be the NFL's toughest division. And their upcoming schedule is unforgiving, with games against the Lions, Rams and Broncos on tap. On the bright side, the much-maligned Marvin Harrison Jr. got into the end zone Sunday, although the 12-yard first-quarter score was his only catch of the day. "Yeah, there's no script for this one," Cardinals coach Mike LaFleur said after the game. "No loss is fun. All three losses we've had over the last three weeks have been different. I like to think I keep it real with these guys, and this one's going to sting. It's not going to be the most fun ride home." Box score | Week 4 live coverage | Game discussion Does Winston's erratic play Sunday open the door for McCarthy replacing him soon? It depends on your definition of "soon," of course. Winston just delivered one of his old-school roller coaster games - some good, some bad and some ugly - and actually made a few meaningful plays with his legs, which is something the Giants desperately wanted to see and a chief reason they acquired the more athletic McCarthy. The Giants also wanted more consistency from Winston and entered Sunday trying to game-plan away from his high-risk approach, but he threw two brutal picks anyway. On the flip side, Winston looked a lot better than he did against the Rams and the Titans (low bar, I know) and showed enough to hold on to his starting job for now. "I'm heating up," Winston said after the game. "And I'm starting to get better, better and better. Last week I was questioning if I can even throw. This week I got people talking about the Jameis Winston experience again. "I'm just grateful for the opportunity I have now. ... Right now, I get to smile and say, 'I'm the starting QB for the New York Football Giants." If the Giants keep winning, Winston will get to keep saying that, because I don't see Harbaugh making a change. Why would he? However, if Winston misfires his way into, say, a two-game losing streak, the coach could get antsy and try to discover in McCarthy what his brother, Jim, found at Michigan. The 3-1 Giants are a first-place team, so the status quo carries the day. A QB change is a potential issue for a bit down the road. - Ian O'Connor What happened to the Cardinals' offense on those final four plays? Why couldn't it get into the end zone? Brissett has not had an easy NFL journey. He's bounced around, playing for six franchises over 11 years (including the New England Patriots twice). A career backup, he has gotten starting opportunities, but he has not always taken advantage. Sunday might be the best example. Trailing 30-24 with 22 seconds to go, the Cardinals had a chance to finish off a stunning comeback. They had first-and-goal from the New York 4-yard line. Brissett twice threw incomplete to receiver Michael Wilson. He then threw incomplete to Trey McBride before the Cardinals called a timeout with 11 seconds left. On fourth down, the game's final play, Brissett threw a pass that Banks jumped and returned 98 yards for a touchdown. The Cardinals actually had a run play called on second down, but the Giants were positioned to take it away. LaFleur said it would've been a situation where the Cardinals would have been "praying" that the rush would work, so Brissett audibled to a pass. "Just giving our guys an opportunity," Brissett said after the game. "They, I guess, made the play, and we didn't. That's all it came down to." In training camp, Brissett dismissed questions about the team's performance last season in games he started. After Brissett replaced an injured Kyler Murray, the Cardinals went 1-11. Much goes into winning, he said. It's not just the quarterback. And he's right. Even Sunday, the Arizona defense gave up a back-breaking third-and-20 and committed a defensive holding penalty that led to a touchdown that gave New York the lead. But with a chance to win, Brissett had to get the Cardinals into the end zone. He had to. The Cardinals are better than expected. They're not among the league's worst teams. But they cannot afford to let winnable games slip away. That's what happened Sunday. - Doug Haller The Giants' running game struggled to take pressure off Winston. What's going on there, and how can they turn things around? The Giants need more from their running game. But the two-headed monster of Cam Skattebo and Najee Harris didn't scare the Cardinals. Skattebo remains the top option, but he managed just 58 yards on 18 carries. Harris' role continues to grow, but he wasn't effective and finished with nine carries for 30 yards. Harris fumbled with the Giants driving in Arizona territory early in the fourth quarter. The Giants were clinging to a three-point lead at the time, so the miscue could have been costly. But the defense forced a three-and-out on the ensuing possession to bail out Harris. The Giants had a chance to run out the clock late, but Skattebo was only able to pick up one first down. There's no explosive element to the Giants' running game, which doesn't figure to change with this group of backs and the immobile Winston at quarterback. - Dan Duggan How did the Giants' defense fare in its first game without Brian Burns, its injured leader and top defender? All's well that ends well, right? Banks' game-sealing interception was a bit of fun deja vu for Giants fans, who saw safety Jevon Holland intercept Titans quarterback Cam Ward in the final seconds to seal New York's Week 3 win. Of course, things didn't start great for New York. In fact, it looked as if the Giants' defense could be in for a long day as the Cardinals marched down the field for touchdowns on their first two possessions, with first-round rookie running back Jeremiyah Love getting off to a fast start. But the defense finally found its footing and put together one of its stronger performances of the season, limiting Arizona to just 270 yards of offense. The Giants entered the week with just one sack on their ledger and ranked last in the league in pressures (21) and pressure rate (20 percent), according to TruMedia. However, they got after Brissett on Sunday while tallying two sacks and forcing three turnovers - all Brissett interceptions. A big part of the defense coming together was the play of first-round rookie Arvell Reese, who seemed to be everywhere Sunday. He tallied one interception to go with three passes defended and nine tackles, including one for a loss. Last year's No. 3 pick Abdul Carter also added three quarterback hits. - Charlotte Carroll