The Giants dominated the Falcons yesterday on both sides of the football.  Eli Manning looked pretty sharp yesterday as he completed 23 of 32 passes for 277 yards with 3 TD passes and 0 INTs.  He also carried the ball 2 times for 13 yards (6.5 ypc) in this game.  Brandon Jacobs was a beast in this game as he rushed for 92 yards on 14 carries (6.6 ypc) and he also caught 2 passes for 8 yards.  Ahmad Bradshaw also had a solid game with 14 carries for 63 yards (4.5 ypc) and he also caught 5 passes for 22 yards (4.4 avg).  WR Hakeem Nicks led the way for the Giants in this game with 6 grabs for 115 yards (19.2 avg) with 2 TD grabs.  Mario Manningham (4 rec, 68 yards, TD) and Victor Cruz (2 rec, 28 yards) also pitched in for the Giants in this game.  The Giants finished up with 172 yards rushing on 31 carries (5.5 ypc) and they also completed 23 of 32 passes (71.9%) for 270 yards as they had possession of the ball for 34:34.

The defense was outstanding for the Giants last night.  Safety Antrel Rolle (9 tackles), LB Chase Blackburn (9 tackles, 1 tackle for a loss) and DE Jason Pierre-Paul (8 tackles, 2 tackles for a loss) led the way for the Giants in this game.  The Falcons finished up with 64 yards rushing on 21 carries (3.0 ypc) and they also completed 24 of 41 passes (58.5%) for 183 yards.  The Giants are moving on to play the Packers in Green Bay next weekend.

The Giants and Falcons have won three of their last four games.  The Falcons are 4-4 on the road this year and the Giants are 4-4 at home.  These two teams are very well matched up in what should be a good game.  Here is a look at the matchups in this game:

When the Giants have the ball:  The Giants are going to come out passing the ball in this game.  Eli Manning should have plenty of time to throw the ball, so he’s going to be looking deep to Hakeem Nicks and Victor Cruz often in this game.  The Falcons are giving up 236.6 yards passing per game, so the Giants should have very little problem moving the ball through the air.  Look for the Giants to keep Ahmad Bradshaw and Brandon Jacobs heavily involved in the running game this Sunday in an effort to force the Falcons to play somewhat honest defensively.

When the Falcons have the ball:  The Giants’ front seven better tighten up the chinstraps this Sunday as Michael Turner is going to be blasting away at them in this game.  The Giants gave up 121.3 yards rushing per game and 4.5 yards per carry this year, so Turner is likely going to have some success.  The Giants are going to send DE Jason Pierre-Paul (16.5 sacks) and the rest of the guys after Matt Ryan.  They need to get to Ryan, because if he has time to throw the ball…the Giants are going to be into big trouble.  Ryan will be looking short to WR Roddy White and TE Tony Gonzalez.  But the safeties will have to help out over the top against the game breaking Julio Jones.

PREDICTION:  FALCONS 33, GIANTS 30

31-year old QB Eli Manning carried the Giants back to the playoffs this year.  He led them to a 9-7 record which was good enough to win the NFC East.  Manning played in 16 games (all starts) for the Giants this year and he completed 359 of 589 passes (61%) for 4,933 yards with 29 TD passes and 16 INTs (92.9 QB Rating).  He also carried the ball 35 times for 15 yards (0.4 ypc) with 1 TD run this year.  Manning has now played in 121 games (119 starts) in his NFL career so far and he has completed 2,291 of 3,921 passes (58.4%) for 27,579 yards with 185 TD passes and 129 INTs (82.1 QB Rating).  He has also carried the ball 193 times for 365 yards (1.9 ypc) with 4 TD runs so far in his NFL career.  Manning is 69-50 (58%) during the regular season as the Giants’ starting QB.

The Giants plastered the Cowboys last Sunday.  Eli Manning was outstanding in this game as he completed 24 of 33 passes for 346 yards with 3 TD passes and 0 INTs.  Ahmad Bradshaw led the way on the ground for the Giants in this game with 16 carries for 57 yards (3.6 ypc) with 1 TD run and he also caught 3 passes for 12 yards with 1 TD grab.  D.J. Ware (2 carries for 19 yards) and Brandon Jacobs (7 carries for 16 yards) also pitched in for the Giants in the running game.  WRs Victor Cruz (6 rec, 178 yards, 2 TD grabs) and Hakeem Nicks (5 rec, 76 yards, 1 TD grab) led the way for the Giants in this game.  FB Harry Hynoski pitched in with 4 grabs for 31 yards (7.8 avg) in this game.  The Giants finished up with 106 yards rushing on 31 carries (3.4 ypc) and they also completed 24 of 33 passes (72.7%) for 331 yards as they had possession of the ball for 34:33.

The defense was excellent for the Giants as they sacked Tony Romo six times in this game.  LB Michael Boley (9 tackles), LB Jacquian Williams (8 tackles, 1 tackle for a loss, 1 sack and 1 QB hit), safety Antrel Rolle (8 tackles, 1 pass defensed and 1 interception) and safety Kenny Phillips (8 tackles) led the way for the Giants in this game.  DE Jason Pierre-Paul (5 tackles, 1 sack, 1 tackle for a loss and 2 QB hits) and OLB Mathias Kiwanuka (5 tackles, 2 tackles for a loss and 1 fumble recovery) also had solid games for the Giants.  The Giants finished the regular season with a 9-7 record.  They won the NFC East and they will host the Atlanta Falcons this weekend in the first round of the NFL Playoffs.

This is a do or die game tomorrow night for the Giants and Cowboys.  The winner gets the crown in the NFC East and the loser goes home.  The Giants have only won 2 of their last 7 games, while the Cowboys have only won 1 of their last four games.  The Giants beat the Cowboys 37-34 in Dallas just three weeks ago.  Here is a look at the matchups in this game:

When the Giants have the ball:  The Giants are going to likely run a little more than the first time they played the Cowboys.  Ahmad Bradshaw and Brandon Jacobs will likely share the workload against the Cowboys as they try to keep their defense honest.  The Giants’ O-Line better be ready because OLB DeMarcus Ware (18 sacks) and the Cowboys (40 sacks) love to bring the heat on the QB.  If Eli Manning has time to throw the ball, he’s going to have a lot of success throwing the ball to Hakeem Nicks and Victor Cruz tomorrow night.

When the Cowboys have the ball:  The Cowboys are going to try to throw the ball a lot tomorrow night.  Tony Romo has a badly bruised right hand which will give the D-Linemen of the Giants a target.  You know the Giants will be going after Romo’s hand and they have 42 sacks already this year.  The falloff from Romo to backup Stephen McGee is huge.  Romo will likely be throwing shorter passes in this game due to his hand injury.  Jason Witten, Dez Bryant, Miles Austin and Laurent Robinson will be counted on to get yards after the catch tomorrow night.  Felix Jones is also banged up, so Sammy Morris might get in on the action for the Cowboys tomorrow night.

PREDICTION:  GIANTS 34, COWBOYS 23