Sports Articles Johnson

Championship Round in the NFL

Sunday’s Recap
Picks – Giants +7 at Cowboys
Result – Win
Amount - 50 units
Season Bankroll - +$550

My best bet is:

Featured game:
Giants +7 at Packers

It’s no secret that I have been bullish on the Giants during this year’s NFL playoffs. They are a team playing with a ton of confidence right now and they have been quite impressive for about a month now. This week, they play America’s sweetheart, Brett Favre and the Green Bay Packers who enjoy one of the best postseason home-field advantages in the NFL. The New York Giants, however, might not be intimidated by the frigid conditions at Lambeau Field because of their outstanding play on the road as they have won their last 9 road contests this season, an NFL record.

Which team is the team of destiny here? For only the second time in his career, Favre will play an NFC title game at Lambeau Field. Green Bay beat Carolina at home in 1997 en route to its first Super Bowl victory in 29 years, and the only one of Favres career.
The Packers, who lost Favres second Super Bowl appearance in 1998, are 13-2 all-time in playoff games on the "Frozen Tundra" of Lambeau Field.

On the other hand, if there is a team equipped to handle the environment, it would be the Giants. Two playoff victories have run their streak of road wins to a league-record nine straight, dating to a season-opening loss at Dallas. They now looks to set another NFL mark by winning 10 road games in one season, breaking the record it shares with the 2005 Pittsburgh Steelers. The Giants avenged two regular-season losses to the Cowboys with a 21-17 win at top-seeded Dallas last Sunday in the divisional round. New York is one win away from its fourth Super Bowl appearance and first in seven years.

Favre was effective in last Saturdays 42-20 divisional victory over Seattle completing 18 of 23 passes for 173 yards and three touchdowns as the Packers bounced back after trailing 14-0. That deficit was a product of two fumbles from running back Ryan Grant, who recovered to turn in the best rushing effort in Packers playoff history. Grant ran for 201 yards and three touchdowns.

Grant is someone the Giants are very familiar with. Due to its glut of running backs, New York dealt Grant to the Packers for a sixth-round draft pick shortly before the season opener after he spent two years with the Giants on the practice squad.

With Favre on the other side, theres been less attention on much-maligned Giants quarterback Eli Manning. The top overall draft pick in 2004, Manning had his leadership skills criticized by former big mouth running back Tiki Barber and his playmaking ability questioned during a season in which he tied for the NFL lead with 20 interceptions.

After losing his two previous playoff games, Manning has shined in New Yorks two wins with a total of four touchdown passes and no interceptions. He threw for two TDs and 163 yards in the win at Dallas last Sunday, just hours after brother Peyton and Indianapolis were eliminated by San Diego.

The Manning family is expected to make the trip to Green Bay to see if Eli can reach the Super Bowl just one season after Peyton played in and won his first. The weather, which calls for temperatures in single digits as well as snow flurries, could dictate the effectiveness of both teams passing attacks. Another factor affecting Green Bays vaunted passing attack is the state of New Yorks banged up secondary.

The Giants played last Sunday without cornerbacks Sam Madison (abdominal) and Kevin Dockery (hip flexor), and their status for Sunday is uncertain. Rookie cornerback Aaron Ross left the Dallas game with a shoulder injury in the second half, but returned to practice Wednesday.

When the teams met in Week 2, Favre took advantage of a New York defense still adjusting to new coordinator Steve Spagnuolo by completing 29 of 38 passes for 286 yards and three touchdowns as Green Bay won 35-13 at Giants Stadium. Both teams have undergone plenty of changes since that game, with the Giants defense in particular showing major improvement and finishing with a league-high 53 sacks.

Also, Grant and New York running backs Brandon Jacobs and Ahmad Bradshaw did not have a single carry in that game. All three figure to be featured prominently in the cold, snowy conditions in the rematch. The Giants tandem helped New York average 134.3 yards rushing in the regular season to rank fourth in the NFL.

This matchup is a whole new ballgame. The Giants have a very real chance to win this game outright, so you should definitely take the points here.

Here are the rest of the picks.

Favorite / Spread / Underdog / My Picks
PATRIOTS / -14.0 / Chargers / PATRIOTS

Good luck with your action tonight!


by Johnson