Packers To Face New York Giants Next Sunday in NFC Divisional Round

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Aaron Rodgers and the Packers will take on the New York Giants next Sunday at Lambeau Field.
Aaron Rodgers and the Packers will take on the New York Giants next Sunday at Lambeau Field.

With a 24-2 victory over the Atlanta Falcons in the NFC Wild Card round Sunday, the New York Giants (10-7) ensured themselves a trip to Green Bay next weekend to take on the Packers in the NFC Divisional Round. The game will take place at 3:30 CST and be aired on FOX.

The New Orleans Saints, who defeated the Detroit Lions 45-28 on Saturday, will travel to San Francisco to play the 49ers in the other Divisional matchup.

New York left no doubt who should be the team advancing in the NFC playoffs Sunday. They worked through a slow first half with a 7-2 lead, then poured in on the Falcons in the second half with 17 points, including two Eli Manning touchdown passes.

The Giants rushing attack, which ranked 32 in the NFL during the regular season, rushed for 172 yards on 31 carries and was a driving force for the offense all afternoon. Brandon Jacobs had 92 of those yards, and Ahmad Bradshaw tacked on another 63.

The Giants’ defense also had a standout day, limiting the Falcons to just 247 total yards and zero points. Quarterback Matt Ryan was sacked just twice but was generally under heavy pressure for most of the game, and Michael Turner ran for just 2.7 yards a carry. They did lose Deon Grant (groin) and Aaron Ross (concussion), two key players in their secondary, to injuries. That could be a big factor next Sunday if both are forced to miss.

Even so, New York will ride a three-game winning streak into Lambeau Field. This will be a confident bunch, and for good reason. The Giants are playing as well right now as they have all season.

Sunday’s meeting will mark the first playoff game between the Giants and Packers since New York knocked off Green Bay in the 2007 NFC Championship game. However, the Packers have beaten the Giants in two regular season games since then, winning 45-17 in December of 2010 and 38-35 earlier this season.

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Zach Kruse is a 23-year-old sports journalist with a passion for the Green Bay Packers. He currently lives in Wisconsin and is working on his journalism degree, while also covering prep sports for The Dunn Co. News.

You can read more of Zach's Packers articles on AllGreenBayPackers.com.

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24 thoughts on “Packers To Face New York Giants Next Sunday in NFC Divisional Round

  1. Right now, it sucks to be an ATL fan, seeing as they leveraged their immediate future for Julio Jones.. STILL can’t find a way to get it done in the postseason. It’s going to be a long, tedious draft for Falcons fans.

    Ouch.

  2. Not worried at all. GB should win this hands down.

    3 things they should be able to do that have to happen….

    1. Keep it at 3 or under sacks on AR.
    2. Keep their RB’s from getting out of control.
    3. Pick off Eli 1 time or more..

    I see all these things happening, en route to an easy GB win.

  3. The only thing the Giants should be confident in is that they will lose in Green Bay , the Giant defense with their bad secondary does not match up with the Packers as they have scorednts in the last 2 games against them and a big part of that is they can not match the team speed of the Packers offense with Nelson and Finley , the team that won here in 2007 did not have to deal with the speed of Nelson and Finley or a quarterback like Rodgers who is not affraid to play in the cold like Favre that year.
    The Giants and any other visiting team would have to win the turnover battle by 3 or more and that is not going to happen because Manning will cough it up and the Packers do not cough it up.
    Do you guys remember what we did in the super bowl to a Steeler defense that has a great fron 7 but a bad secondary ? We spread them out and they had no chance against us, the Giant defense is not as good and it is amazing how the media thinks the Giants are great because they beat the Jets and Dallas twice and they struggled for 3 quarters with a Falcon team that never wins outdoors an has a quarterback who is 0-3 in the playoffs.
    I repeat , this is alot better Packer team than 2007 , think about it , Finley now Donald Lee then , Rodgers now Favre who hatedcold weather then,
    Jordey Nelson now.
    The Giant team is no better than they were then and I really think that Giant team was better than this one.
    Also remember that the Packers have never failed to win it all when they finished with the best record in their conference

    1. Jeff, two things that bother me a bit about your statement:

      1) Can we really call the Giants secondary “bad” and be sure they can’t match up after watching them skunk the Falcon’s offense? While ATL doesn’t have the depth of the Packers’ WR corp, they have extremely good WRs 1-3. I think you make legitimate points about Matt Ryan, but I would be hesitant to say that the Giant’s secondary had nothing to do with their Defensive performance vs. ATL.

      2) I’d just like to point out that statements like this:

      “Also remember that the Packers have never failed to win it all when they finished with the best record in their conference”

      ..Are not stats that represent any real correlation. Football is a game of match ups and performance. Every season is different. What you are bringing to our attention is trivia; it has no implication on what lies ahead. It is an interesting note, but should not be used as an indication of future performance.

    2. Using what has happened in the past as you main argument for what will happen next week is a fools game. Every team is a different team every year. For example, the Giants only have 14 players who were on the 2007 team that beat the Packers in the NFC Championship game.

      I do believe the Packers will win, but these Giants are peaking and gaining confidence at the right time. They could very well present a problem to the Packers and are not to be discounted. The Packers offensive line holds the key to this game.

      1. Isn’t that usually the case. I think a rested Raji & Picket will be big in this game.

  4. The players that were there in 2007 like Jennings , Jones, Grant , Clifton , Wells , Woodson, Williams , Hawk, Pickett , Crosby and even Rodgers who was there is going to want revenge.

  5. Mr. Jersey Al, I know that we are on the playoff stretch and are talking about winning another Super Bowl, but I’m a draft junkie. Would it be possible for you to write an article that talks about the compensation picks that the Packers COULD be getting this year?

    Players that left as UFA are:
    Korey Hall
    Cullen Jenkins
    Daryn Colledge
    Brandon Jackson
    Quinn Johnson
    Atari Bigby

    I know that we traded for a draft pick with Caleb Schlauderhaff.

    Could you do a little PREDICTING as to what you think the Packers will be getting?

    Thanks.

  6. Would Nick Barnett make that list? Even if we cut him?

    The packers will need to buckle thier chin straps tight and give it all they have against the Giants. I like our chances. Our O-line played well the last 2 games against stiff D-lines. I think they will hold up enough to let rodgers do his thing. It will come down to Clifton on the blind side against PPJ.

    I don’t like the faCt that the Giants are running the ball better lately. That balanced attack will put a strain on our D. Our D is rested up and DC should have his unit ready. They need to come out hard.

    I would imagine that the coaching staff knew the giants were the higher probability team that they would meet and spent the most time game planning for.

    It’s time for the Pack to put on thier A game and make a run at the prize. Good luck guys.

    By the way, look at the AFC…the broncos and texans? The packers would beat any team left in the AFC.

    1. no, if a player is cut they do not contribute to the NFL’s top secret compensatory pick formula.

  7. I agree, the line will be the key, but how we handle their running game might be another, I believe Jacobs was the only running back last time we played. One very good point, it’s at home and our fans will be miserable for them!!!!!!

  8. After watching the games this weekend, (maybe with the exception of the Steelers/Broncos) it was amazing just how bad the losers appeared to be. For the playoffs, a lot of it was just weak looking football. The Falcons didn’t look as though they even should have been in the playoffs! If the Giants took anything away from that game, it shouldn’t be that they walked into Lambeau Field once before and knocked off the Packers. It has to be that they should be very worried about having to play the Packers. Rodgers gets the ball out way faster than Ryan and he also doesn’t have a deer in the headlights look when he’s waiting for a receiver to get open. The Packers also have a better receiving corps than Atlanta. The defense isn’t anything to brag about, but they can hold the line. The Giants played against them as hard as they’ve played in any game so far this season, but it still wasn’t good enough … and that was missing Jennings and being out of sync with the receivers in the first 3 quarters. JMHO

  9. the giants remind me a lot of the packers last year. a defense that has been decimated by injuries but are getting young guys to step up at the right time.

    having said that, this game will be a shoot out. the packers D is not going to change its stripes all of a sudden.

    the packers could be up by 17 going into the 4th quarter and this game would still be far from over. manningham, cruz and nicks can score at anytime.

    the keys are red zone D and the usual key turnovers. be opportunistic when you can and hold them to 3 more often than you allow 7. i do not see the giants punting more than twice in this game.

  10. TT and MM remember the end of the 2007 game more than any other played during their tenure. That kicked off the Favre debacle and the worst year they had in GB. A day that will live in infamy. The Pack will be ready and will not take anything for granted. (Vegas this morning Packers favored by 9 1/2 – Way too high)

    The weather will not be a factor, in fact probably be in the relatively balmy twenties at game time. The turf will be good. The only potential problem could be the wind. Right now it doesn’t look like it will be an issue. That’s good! No excuses, just talent vs. talent.

    Go Pack!

  11. If the defense can hold the giants under 27 points we will probably win. They scored 35 on us in week 13 at giant stadium without Bishop and Hawk (and Woodson on thier last drive). The Pack is at home, have all thier players rested up and healthy. The coaches had extra time to game plan.

    Bradshaw and Jacobs both played in the last game and we did an ok job stopping the run with backup ILBs. We need to get some pressure on Manning. CM3 and Woodson have had 3 weeks rest to help heal ailments and should be full strength. Our fans need to make as much noise as possible.

    Packers 33-27

  12. Fortunate for GB was that the Giants had a great game the week before GB meets em. It ought to scare the pack. The Giants brought it impressive way…and intimidated. And good thing, too. Now the Pack can prepare for it. It would have been worse if the Giants had muddled through yesterday…then brought out their break-out game next week. The surprise element is huge. Atlanta thought they wouldn’t see much in the air…and could stop the run. Think surprise isn’t huge? Look what Denver brought out of the closet. Its time for MM to earn it, and prepare for a Giant run-heavy or pass-heavy attack. I could see the Giants going either way, grinding/pounding and keeping GB offense on the bench, or I could see them lighting it up with play action pass attack. I can’t wait. Get em ready MM, and go pack.

  13. Sorry for the off topic. Some bad news coming from GB. Joe Philbin’s son is missing in Oshkosh. Last heard from late Saturday. Reports of a man falling through the ice calling for help had been made. Right now Oshkosh police are conducting a search.

    I’m praying for a positive outcome for Joe and his family. Even though we don’t know him, he is a part of the Packer Family around the world. I’m praying for a good result to this difficult time.

    1. Heard that as well Ron. Terrible news. Hopefully they find him soon and it just turns out him and some buddies went on an impromptu road trip to vegas.

  14. Oshkosh Police reort they just retrived a body from the Oshkosh River. No idnetification made yet.

  15. I hope for better defense and Mike to call slants/crossing routes to disrupt them trying to play man.

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