I hate Giants games played any time other than Sundays @ 1:00. So I am less than pleased that today's game against Carolina was flexed, leaving the Giants with back to back Sunday night games. And I know I am going to pay for it in the morning.
But what can be better than playing at home for the #1 seed in the next to last game of the regular season? Two weeks ago it was the Giants defense that couldn't stop the run in the Eagles game. The good news last week was that the Giants defense showed up in Dallas. They pounded Romo, played stout against the run, and gave the offense more than enough opportunities to win the game. But the offense didn't show up and failed to score a touchdown for the second week in a row (not counting the TD with 15 seconds to go against Eagles).
According to Brandon Jacobs, he will play tonight. If he plays "Jacobs football", the Giants should win this game. The offensive line has to be feeling a bit chagrined after last week's dismal performance, both in pass protection and run blocking, and I have a feeling they will be playing with a chip on their shoulder. Add to that the weather prediction - 20 degrees, high winds, with a chance of some precipitation thrown in - and the Giants should dominate the running game on both sides of the ball. I know the Panthers are on a roll and that they have been running the ball better than the Giants over the past 3-5 games. But the Giants still lead the league in rushing and if Jacobs plays physical, I think the Giants defense will be more effective stopping the Panthers running game than vice versa.
The sole advantage I see for the Panthers is their Steve Smith. That is where the weather can be the great equalizer. The Panthers are going to ignore the Giants passing game, regardless of the weather. The Giants can't do that, unless the weather helps out and makes passing a futile exercise.
Prediction? Giants 17 Panthers 10
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