The Giants physically pounded the Bucs on Sunday in Tampa as they earned a trip to Dallas next weekend to take on the Cowboys.  Eli Manning was razor sharp as he completed 20 of 27 passes for 185 yards with 2 TD passes.  Brandon Jacobs had a decent game before he was injured as he carried the ball 13 times for 34 yards (2.6 ypc) with 1 TD run and they also caught 2 passes for 16 yards and a TD.  Ahmad Bradshaw followed Jacobs into the game and he did a solid job carrying the football 17 times for 66 yards (3.9 ypc).  Amani Toomer was the star of the receiving corps as he caught 7 passes for 74 yards (10.6 avg) with a TD grab.  The Giants finished up with 100 yards rushing on 30 carries (3.3 ypc) and they also completed 20 of 27 passes for 177 yards.

The Giants defense played very well against the Bucs and it was led by defensive end Michael Strahan who had 9 tackles and a sack.  The Bucs finished up with 69 yards rushing on 22 carries (3.1 ypc) and they also completed 23 of 39 passes for 202 yards.

It will be interesting to see which coach did the right thing down the stretch between Jon Gruden and Tom Coughlin.  Gruden rested his starters the last couple of weeks (the Bucs lost both games) while Coughlin played his regulars last week as he tried to beat the Patriots despite having nothing to gain.

When the Giants have the football they will likely try to bully the Bucs small but fast defense with the running game.  Look for Brandon Jacobs and rookie Ahmad Bradshaw to pound on the Bucs defense which is allowing 107.9 yards rushing per game.  If the Giants are effective running the football it will set up play action passes which is one thing Eli Manning is good at.  The Bucs safeties (Tanard Jackson and Jermaine Phillips) will be the key for the defense against the Giants because they will have to take the tight end (Kevin Boss) out of the Giants offense because Manning loves throwing the short pass over the middle.  The safeties also will need to help Ronde Barber with Plaxico Burress who has a huge height advantage and Manning is good at throwing the jump ball.

The Buccaneers must keep the ball on the ground in this football game.  Ernest Graham and Michael Pittman must carry the load against a Giants defense that is allowing 97.7 yards rushing per game.  The reason the Bucs need to be effective running the ball is to slow the Giants pass rush.  The Giants had 53 sacks this season and will no doubt be bringing the heat against the young offensive line of the Bucs.  Osi Umenyiora (13 sacks), Justin Tuck (10 sacks) and Michael Strahan (9 sacks) will likely put a lot of pressure on Jeff Garcia who will make mistakes if rushed.  But, if the Bucs line can give Garcia time to throw the ball he should be effective against a Giants defense that is allowing 207.3 yards passing per game.

PREDICTION:  NEW YORK GIANTS 24, TAMPA BAY BUCCANEERS 13

The Giants have made the playoffs because of their running game and solid defense.  Eli Manning had another wildly inconsistent season in which he posted another poor QB Rating (73.9).  Manning has played in 16 games this season and he completed 297 of 529 passes (56.1%) for 3,336 yards with 23 TD passes and 20 interceptions.  He also carried the ball 29 times for 69 yards (2.4 ypc) with 1 TD run this year.  Manning has now played in 57 games in his NFL career and he has completed 987 of 1,805 passes (54.7%) for 11,385 yards with 77 TD passes and 64 interceptions (73.4 QB Rating).  He also has carried the ball 89 times for 205 yards (2.3 ypc) with 2 TD runs in his career.

Jared Lorenzen wasn’t needed much as the Giants backup this season.  He played in 2 games for the Giants this year and he completed 4 of 8 passes (50%) for 28 yards with 0 TDs and 0 INTs (58.3 QB Rating).  He also carried the ball 1 time for 2 yards.  Before this season Lorenzen had never thrown a pass in the NFL and he only had 1 carry for 2 yards.

Anthony Wright also got a cup of coffee with the Giants this season and it didn’t go well.  Wright played in 4 games last season for the Giants and he completed 1 of 7 passes (14.3%) for 12 yards (39.6 QB Rating).  He also carried the ball 1 time for -1 yard.  Wright has now played in 33 games in his NFL career and he has completed 332 of 605 passes (54.9%) for 3,590 yards with 20 TD passes and 25 interceptions (66.3 QB Rating).  He also has carried the ball 80 times for 221 yards (2.8 ypc).

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