=== Giants-Panthers to Determine Playoff Seeding at Top of NFC ===
(Sports Network) - The favorite to represent the NFC in Super Bowl XLIII will
be declared this Sunday night at a cold and windy New Jersey Meadowlands,
where the suddenly-slumping New York Giants host the hard-charging Carolina
Panthers with the conference's No. 1 playoff seed on the line.
These teams enter this schedule-maker's dream scenario with identical 11-3
records heading into the regular season's final two weeks. With no other NFC
club capable of earning 12 wins, the winner of Sunday's showdown will hold the
tiebreaker on the other and therefore seize homefield advantage throughout the
upcoming conference tournament.
The Giants, who have already secured first place in the NFC East, could still
receive a first-round bye in the playoffs with a loss to the Panthers,
provided Minnesota falls to Atlanta this weekend. Carolina, which owns a cushy
two-game lead atop the NFC South formally clinched a postseason berth Saturday
night when Dallas lost to Baltimore. If both the Buccaneers and Falcons are
beaten earlier Sunday, the Panthers would enter the game as NFC South
champions.
Carolina comes in as the hotter of the two teams, having posted victories in
three straight weeks as well as seven of their last eight games. The Panthers
have scored at least 30 points each time during their win streak, which was
extended with last Sunday's 30-10 home triumph over AFC West front-runner
Denver.
A dominating ground attack has been at the forefront of Carolina's recent
surge. Running backs DeAngelo Williams and Jonathan Stewart combined for an
astounding 301 yards to fuel a crucial 38-23 victory over division-rival Tampa
Bay in Week 14, and the Panthers piled up 147 rushing yards in their recent
win over the Broncos.
The Giants have also built their glossy record on the strength of running the
football, but the team has struggled in that area during consecutive losses to
playoff hopefuls Philadelphia and Dallas that preceded this Sunday's clash.
New York was without top rusher Brandon Jacobs for last weekend's 20-8 setback
to the Cowboys due to a sore left knee, but the powerful fourth-year pro is
expected to return to action this week.
The defending world champs have also had trouble airing it out as of late,
with the highly-publicized team-issued suspension to troublesome wide receiver
Plaxico Burress having taken a toll on the passing game. After managing a
season-low 211 total yards in their 20-14 defeat to the Eagles on December 7,
the Giants had only 218 against the Cowboys and quarterback Eli Manning was
sacked a whopping eight times.
Both teams figure to rely heavily on the run in this matchup, with the
forecast calling for sub-freezing temperatures and considerable wind along
with a chance of snow showers.
SERIES HISTORY
Carolina is 2-1 in its all-time regular season series with the Giants, taking
its first loss ever against Big Blue with a 27-13 home defeat in the most
recent meeting, in 2006. The Panthers took the other two regular season
meetings with the G-Men, defeating them in Charlotte in 1996 and at the
Meadowlands in 203.
The most memorable contest between the two occurred in a 2005 NFC First-Round
Playoff, a 23-0 blanking of the Giants by the Panthers in the swamps of
Jersey.
Panthers head coach John Fox is 2-1 in his career against the Giants, for whom
he served as defensive coordinator from 1997 through 2001. New York's Tom
Coughlin is 1-1 against Fox, but is 3-1 against the Panthers, with two of the
wins dating back to his tenure with Jacksonville (1995-2002).
WHEN THE PANTHERS HAVE THE BALL
Carolina's takeoff has coincided with Williams' (1229 rushing yards, 22
receptions, 16 total TD) emergence into one of the NFL's most productive
backs. The former first-round pick has recorded five 100-yard efforts over the
past seven games and scored 12 touchdowns over that sensational stretch. The
rookie Stewart (751 rushing yards, 9 TD, 6 receptions) has made quite an
impact as well on an offense that comes in averaging 146.1 rushing yards per
game (146.1 ypg). The Panthers also sport a top-tier receiver in Pro Bowl
honoree Steve Smith (70 receptions, 1240 yards, 6 TD), who torched Denver for
165 yards and a touchdown on nine catches last week and has eclipsed the
century mark in four straight contests. Thirty-five-year-old wideout Muhsin
Muhammad (54 receptions, 4 TD) has also been a reliable target for veteran
quarterback Jake Delhomme (2853 passing yards, 14 TD, 12 INT), who's been less
consistent. The gritty Cajun has had his troubles on the road this year,
having thrown seven interceptions and just three touchdown passes in
Carolina's six away games.
New York has been a tough team to run on this year, as the defense is yielding
only 90.4 yards per game on the ground and allowed only one enemy running back
to rush for over 100 yards this season. The unit did give up a long touchdown
run to Dallas rookie Tashard Choice last week, however, and missed the
presence of tackle Fred Robbins (30 tackles, 5.5 sacks), who sat out with a
jammed shoulder but is slated to play on Sunday. His return should help out
middle linebacker and leading tackler Antonio Pierce (83 tackles, 1.5 sacks),
who posted a season-low two stops in the Dallas game.
While the Giants haven't been as dangerous pressuring the passer as they were
during last year's Super Bowl run, the club's 40 sacks still stands among the
league's best totals. Many of them have come from relentless end Justin Tuck
(60 tackles, 12 sacks, 1 INT), named to his first career Pro Bowl on Tuesday.
Cornerbacks Aaron Ross (52 tackles, 3 INT) and Corey Webster (43 tackles, 3
INT, 1 sack) have the tough assignment of covering Smith, who figures to draw
his share of double-teams on Sunday. The Panthers have provided strong
protection for Delhomme, as he's been sacked only 10 times over the past 11
games.
WHEN THE GIANTS HAVE THE BALL
A healthy Jacobs (1002 rushing yards, 12 TD, 5 receptions) would go a long way
towards helping solve the Giants' recent offensive woes, as the 264-pound
bruiser is averaging 5.1 yards per carry on the year and has a knack for
wearing down opposing defenses. He's the headliner of a deep backfield
grouping that also includes Derrick Ward (733 rushing yards, 2 TD, 38
receptions), who's made his mark as a runner and receiver, and talented
youngster Ahmad Bradshaw (327 rushing yards, 4 receptions, 2 total TD). Ward
did come out of the Dallas game with a tender ankle and could yield touches to
Bradshaw on Sunday. Manning (2938 passing yards, 20 TD, 10 INT) is likely a
little sore as well after being sacked eight times by the Cowboys in one of
the few poor showings by New York's high-quality offensive line. If the Pro
Bowl signal-caller gets adequate time this week, he'll primarily be looking in
the direction of wide receivers Domenik Hixon (35 receptions, 1 TD) and Amani
Toomer (44 receptions, 4 TD).
The Giants will have to shore up their pass blocking in time for Sunday's
showdown, as Carolina boasts a premier quarterback-killer in four-time Pro
Bowl end Julius Peppers (44 tackles, 12.5 sacks) and a developing high-level
pass rusher in sophomore Charles Johnson (23 tackles, 6 sacks). While Peppers'
disruptive play has earned the freakishly athletic lineman another trip to
Honolulu, cornerback Chris Gamble (82 tackles, 3 INT, 16 PD) made a good case
for one as the team's best cover man. The Panthers have surrendered only 14
touchdown passes on the season, as well as a respectable 204.4 passing yards
per game (12th overall).
Carolina's run defense has been merely average from a statistical standpoint,
as the NFC South leaders rank 18th in the league with an average of 111.5
rushing yards per game. The club may be without an important cog up front for
Sunday's tilt, as space-eating tackle Maake Kemoeatu (36 tackles) sprained his
right ankle against Denver and is doubtful to suit up. Veteran journeyman
Darwin Walker (6 tackles) will likely fill that interior spot opposite
penetrator Damione Lewis (38 tackles, 3.5 sacks). The Panthers are strong at
linebacker, while second-year middle man Jon Beason (122 tackles, 3 INT) and
weakside starter Thomas Davis (97 tackles, 2.5 sacks) have both been rangy
playmakers.
FANTASY FOCUS
The running backs usually take center stage on these two physical teams, and
that should remain so in a potential bad-weather setting on Sunday. Since
there haven't been many better than Williams during the second half and the
Giants' defense has shown some chinks in the armor lately, there's little
reason not to ride the hot hand once again. Jacobs' health issues breed some
caution and may render him to a lesser role on Sunday, but you can be sure the
short-yardage demon will be getting the call when the Giants are near the goal
line. Keep an eye on Ward's status on the injury report, as he's a solid flex
play if active. Conditions at the Meadowlands in December can be a nightmare
for participating quarterbacks, so both Manning and Delhomme should be used
only if necessary. That still shouldn't dissuade anyone from keeping the red-
hot Smith out of fantasy lineups, however. Finally, this is a game that could
come down to the kickers, and New York's John Carney and the Panthers' John
Kasay are two of the best.
OVERALL ANALYSIS
If this game had been played in Charlotte, we'd all be spending this coming
Monday anointing the Panthers as the team with the best chance of hoisting the
Vince Lombardi Trophy a few weeks from now. That could still be the case, but
Carolina is at a decided disadvantage in having to travel up north. The
Panthers have been world-beaters at home but rather ordinary on the road, and
they'll also get their best shot from a battle-tested Giants squad that will
be highly motivated to cast its recent struggles aside. In a nutshell,
whichever team can run the ball better and stop the other from ramming it down
its throat should come out on top. New York's defense has been slightly more
consistent at doing so than that of the Panthers, and Jacobs' anticipated
return should provide a boost to a Giants' offense that's in need of one right
now.
Sports Network Predicted Outcome: Giants 23, Panthers 17
