The Giants belted the Falcons 24-2 last weekend while the Packers were resting up for tomorrow afternoon’s game at Lambeau Field.  DE Jason Pierre-Paul pretty much guaranteed a win in Green Bay and he’s supposed to think that way, but it won’t be easy.  The Giants lost to the Packers 38-35 in New Jersey just six weeks ago.  But, tomorrow they are playing in Green Bay, where the Packers were 8-0 last year.  Here is a look at the matchups in this game:

When the Giants have the ball:  The plan the Giants should have in this game is the same one they had last weekend against the Falcons.  They should try to remain balanced on offense to try to control the clock a little bit and keep the Packers’ offense on the sidelines.  RBs Ahmad Bradshaw and Brandon Jacobs were outstanding last weekend but they will have to deal with a better front seven this weekend.  The Giants will have to fight for every yard they get on the ground tomorrow.  If Eli Manning has time to throw the ball, he’s going to have success.  WRs Victor Cruz, Hakeem Nicks and Mario Manningham are all healthy as well as TE Jake Ballard…..so the Giants are going to be effective throwing the ball.  Eli Manning will have to protect the ball though as the Packers have the best ballhawking secondary in the NFL.

When the Packers have the ball:  The Giants are going to have to mount a good pass rush on Aaron Rodgers, or he’s going to abuse their secondary like he did the first time these two teams played.  He has so many weapons in the passing game that it’s almost impossible to double anyone without getting burnt when he throws the ball to someone else.  WRs Greg Jennings and Jordy Nelson are Rodgers’ favorite targets, but he doesn’t hesitate to throw the ball to WR Randall Cobb, TE Jermichael Finley, WR Donald Driver and James Jones.  RBs Ryan Grant and James Starks will get some carries if the Giants have to many DBs on the field.

PREDICTION:  PACKERS 41, GIANTS 34

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

The Giants played great defense last night and Eli Manning made some huge plays as he took home the MVP of the Super Bowl.  Eli Manning completed 19 of 34 passes for 255 yards with 2 TD passes and 1 interception.  Manning hit Plaxico Burress with a 13-yard strike for a TD with 35 seconds left to seal this game!  Ahmad Bradshaw led the Giants in rushing with 45 yards on 9 carries (5.0 ypc).  Brandon Jacobs pitched in with 14 carries for 42 yards (3.0 ypc).  Amani Toomer led the way for the Giants with 6 catches for 84 yards (14.0 avg).  Steve Smith (5 rec, 50 yards) and Kevin Boss (1 rec, 45 yards) both had huge impacts in this football game.  David Tyree (3 rec, 43 yards) and Plaxico Burress (2 rec, 27 yards) each caught a TD pass.  The Giants finished up with 91 yards rushing on 26 carries (3.5 ypc) and they also completed 19 of 34 passes for 247 yards.

Safety James Butler and linebacker Antonio Pierce led the Giants defense with 11 tackles apiece.  Kawika Mitchell (8 tackles, sack) and Justin Tuck (6 tackles, 2 sacks) made huge impact plays in this football game.  The Patriots finished up with 45 yards rushing on 16 carries (2.8 ypc) and they also completed 29 of 48 passes for 229 yards.

THE NEW YORK GIANTS ARE NOW WORLD CHAMPIONS!

These two teams are having a rematch of their classic battle of week #17 which was won by the Patriots 38-35.  Tom Brady had a field day in that game as he completed 32 of 42 passes for 356 yards with 2 TD passes.  Laurence Maroney didn’t find much running room that day against the Giants as he carried the ball 19 times for 46 yards (2.4 ypc) with 2 TD runs.  Wes Welker had a solid game with 11 catches for 122 yards (11.1 avg).  Randy Moss had a sterling game as he caught 6 passes for 100 yards (16.7 avg) with 2 TD grabs.  Kevin Faulk was solid catching 8 passes for 64 yards (8.0 avg). 

Eli Manning had a solid game against the Patriots in week #17 as he completed 22 of 32 passes for 251 yards with 4 TD passes and 1 interception.  Brandon Jacobs was busy as he carried the ball 15 times for 67 yards (4.5 ypc) and he also caught 5 passes for 44 yards (8.8 avg) with a TD grab.  Plaxico Burress had a great game as he caught 4 passes for 84 yards (21.0 avg) with 2 TD grabs.  Rookie TE Kevin Boss was also effective underneath as he caught 4 passes for 45 yards (11.3 avg) with a TD grab.

Eli Manning has saved his best play for last as he has been impressive in the post season.  In three games, Manning has completed 53 of 85 passes (62.4%) for 599 yards with 4 TD passes and 0 interceptions (99.1 QB Rating).  Manning must protect the ball against the Patriots like he has this whole post season if the Giants are going to have a chance at an upset.  Brandon Jacobs has carried the ball 48 times for 155 yards (3.2 ypc) with 3 TD runs this post season and he has caught 4 passes for 29 yards (7.3 avg).  Rookie Ahmad Bradshaw has also played well this post season as he has carried the ball 39 times for 163 yards (4.2 ypc) with 1 TD run.  Bradshaw has also caught 3 passes for 24 yards (8.0 avg) in the playoffs.  The Giants will attempt to keep the ball on the ground against the Patriots to control the clock.  The Patriots are allowing 4.2 yards per carry in the post season so the Giants could be effective running the ball tomorrow.  It will be up to Junior Seau, Tedy Bruschi, Vince Wilfork and Rodney Harrison to stop Jacobs and Bradshaw on the ground.  Plaxico Burress has caught 16 passes for 194 yards (12.1 avg) in the post season and he has guaranteed a victory tomorrow for the Giants.  It will be interesting to see how he does against Asante Samuel who is the biggest thief the Patriots have in the secondary.  Amani Toomer has been the go-to man in the playoffs for Eli Manning as he has caught 15 passes for 196 yards (13.1 avg) with 3 TD grabs in the playoffs.  Steve Smith (9 rec, 102 yards, 11.3 avg) and tight end Kevin Boss (4 rec, 45 yards, 11.3 avg) do a lot of the tough work over the middle for the Giants.

Tom Brady has been solid this post season as he has completed 48 of 61 passes (78.7%) for 471 yards with 5 TD passes and 3 interceptions (105.7 QB Rating).  But something doesn’t appear right with Brady right now as he is not throwing the ball deep much so look for the Giants CBs to bump and run to throw off the Patriots timing on the short stuff.  Laurence Maroney has been outstanding in the post season as he has carried the ball 47 times for 244 yards (5.2 ypc) with 2 TD runs.  He also has caught 3 passes for 49 yards (16.3 avg).  The Giants are only allowing 83.7 yards rushing per game (3.6 ypc) in the post season so Maroney will have his work cut out for him Sunday.  Kevin Faulk is the silent assassin of the Patriots as he always plays well when the games get big and Sunday definately qualifies for that.  Faulk has carried the ball 5 times for 17 yards (3.4 ypc) in the post season and he has caught 13 passes for 118 yards (9.1 avg).  Faulk will put big time pressure on the Giants outside linebackers who must contain him or he will hurt them.  Wes Welker has been the leading receiver for the Patriots in the post season as he has caught 16 passes for 110 yards (6.9 avg) with 2 TD grabs.  With the Giants bringing a furious pass rush look for Welker to heavily involved in the short passing attack for the Pats on Sunday.  It will be interesting to see how the Patriots use Randy Moss as he might be too expensive to retain next season.  He has been a decoy so far this post season as he has only caught 2 passes for 32 yards (16.0 avg) in the first two games.  Look for him to show up tomorrow on the big stage for the first time.

PREDICTION:  NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS 34, NEW YORK GIANTS 27

Things were looking bad at the end of regulation for the Giants as Lawrence Tynes missed two straight fields goals including one as time was expiring.  But he redeemed himself in OT as he made CB Corey Webster’s interception of Brett Favre in OT stand up.  The Giants advance to the Super Bowl with a rematch with the Patriots who the Giants gave all they could handle in the last week of the regular season.  Eli Manning continued his solid post season play as he completed 21 of 40 passes for 254 yards.  Brandon Jacobs rushed for 67 yards on 21 carries (3.2 ypc) with a TD run.  Ahmad Bradshaw shared the running game with Jacobs as he carried the ball 16 times for 63 yards (3.9 ypc) with a TD run.  Plaxico Burress had an outstanding game as he caught 11 passes for 154 yards (14.0 avg).  Amani Toomer pitched in with 4 grabs for 42 yards (10.5 avg).  The Giants finished up with 134 yards rushing on 39 carries (3.4 ypc) and they also completed 21 of 40 passes for 246 yards.

The Giants really played well, especially in the second half and overtime.  Safety Gibril Wilson led the way for the Giants on defense with 8 tackles.  Cornerback Corey Webster only had three tackles but he also had the big interception of Brett Favre in overtime to set up kicker Lawrence Tynes for the game winning kick.  The Packers finished up with 28 yards rushing on 14 carries (2.0 ypc) and they also completed 19 of 35 passes for 236 yards.

This should be a great game to watch on T.V. as the game time temperature is expected to be 4 degrees.  Still, the Giants and Packers are used to cold weather so the best team will still likely win the game. 

The Giants will need to run the football effectively to have any chance to win this football game.  That’s because the Packers don’t blitz often which leaves their linebackers in pass coverage which will hurt the Giants when they try to throw short.  With that in mind the Giants will likely try to pound the football with Brandon Jacobs and Ahmad Bradshaw.  It will be interesting to see who wins the battle up front because if the Giants can’t run the ball and give Eli Manning time to throw the ball this game will be over quick.

The Packers will likely lean on their running game in the frigid weather.  This will likely be a problem for the Giants who had big problems last week with Marion Barber.  Ryan Grant rushed for 201 yards last week against the Seahawks and he’ll be looking to make the Giants pay for trading him to the Packers for a 6th round pick.  The Giants will likely have huge problems with Brett Favre because he gets rid of the ball so fast that it will likely negate the Giants pass rush which is the strength of their team. 

PREDICTION:  GREEN BAY PACKERS 28, NEW YORK GIANTS 13

The Giants only had possession of the football for 23:30 of this football game but that’s all they needed to advance to the NFC Championship Game.  Eli Manning was outstanding as he completed 12 of 18 passes for 163 yards with 2 TD passes.  Brandon Jacobs was solid with 54 yards rushing on 14 carries (3.9 ypc) with a TD run.  Ahmad Bradshaw also ran the ball well in this game as he carried the ball 6 times for 34 yards (5.7 ypc).  Amani Toomer had a monster game as he caught 4 passes for 80 yards with 2 TD grabs.  Steve Smith also made some clutch plays as he caught 4 passes for 48 yards.  The Giants finished up with 90 yards on 23 carries (3.9 ypc) and they also completed 12 of 18 passes for 140 yards.

The Giants defense was led by safety Gibril Wilson (10 tackles) and end Michael Strahan (8 tackles).  The Cowboys finished up with 154 yards rushing on 33 carries (4.7 ypc) and they also completed 18 of 36 passes for 182 yards.

This will be the third game between these two rivals which were both won by the Dallas Cowboys.  Still, the Cowboys haven’t played in the last couple of weeks and they rested their players in the last regular season game against the Redskins so they could be rusty.  The Giants however are playing their best football of the season and they are 8-1 on the road this season with the only loss at Dallas.

The key to the game for the Giants when they have the football will be mixing up the play calling.  That’s because the Giants will be in trouble if they know when Eli Manning will be throwing the football.  CBs Terence Newman and Anthony Henry are outstanding cover corners so look for Manning to throw the ball a lot to tight end Kevin Boss over the middle of the football field. 

The Cowboys will try to also mix up the play calling to slow the Giants pass rush which has been outstanding all season long.  Look for the Cowboys to lean on Marion Barber in the running game and TE Jason Witten in the passing game.  The Giants defense will likely focus on stopping Terrell Owens who dominated them this season.  With that in mind look for the Cowboys to use Patrick Crayton and Terry Glenn often.

PREDICTION:  COWBOYS 31, GIANTS 27