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Why the Giants are still going to win the NFC East

By: Brownie 

OK, I know.  You’re probably thinking there’s no way this will happen, but hear me out first.

We all know that there are A LOT of things going against the G-Men as they look to keep their playoff hopes alive against the 9-5 Minnesota Vikings.  So before I shit all over them, let me just say this: There is still hope.

First off:

They’re playing without Odell Beckham Jr.

OBJ’s one game suspension was upheld Wednesday, which only makes things harder for the Giants.  The star receiver will sit out this Sunday’s matchup after going at it all day with future All-Pro corner Josh Norman.  It was brutal and awesome to watch, but things got out of control after this.

He argued that he was provoked by some of the Panthers players before the game, which came to light after these videos surfaced.

 

 

Apparently being threatened with baseball bats wasn’t enough for the NFL.  Their decision to uphold his suspension really shouldn’t surprise anyone.

Which brings us to our second point:

The Giants have the WORST defense in the league.

Just a brief summary of where they rank:

Total yards allowed (5,922): Last.

Yards per game (423): Last.

Passing yards per game (308.4): Last.

So basically, they fucking suck.

This is not the Giants teams we’re used to seeing. You know, the ones whose DEFENSE led them to those two Super Bowl runs. And not only that but…

If the Redskins win, they’re in.

Beat Philly and you’re division champs. It’s that simple. And after how the season started after this decision, it almost seems too good to be true.

Which is because it is.

Look, I’m not sure if anyone can figure the Eagles out, but there’s something I like about Chip Kelly. The Eagles could have easily laid down after getting blown out by the Lions on Thanksgiving, but they didn’t. They were 4-7, and the thought of the playoffs seemed unfathomable as they prepared for their next game on the road against the Patriots.

But they won. And they won the next week against the Bills too.

So just throw out last week’s game against the Cardinals, because it’s irrelevant at this point.

All they need to worry about is beating the Redskins, and based on the way they run their pass-heavy offense, it’s a great matchup for Philly.

How the Giants will win on Sunday:

If Carolina beats Atlanta (7-7) or if the Seahawks (9-5) beat the Rams, the Vikings are in.  This scenario seems probable, seeing that the Panthers just annihilated the Falcons 38-0 two weeks ago, and that the Seahawks are playing the Rams, who are God-awful.

If all of this happens, the Vikings will lock up either the 5 or the 6 seed BEFORE they even take the field Sunday night.

If they’re smart, they’ll limit Adrian Peterson for the rest of the season to have him fresh for the playoffs.  They’re not going to get a bye, and going for the division would be pointless when you look at the big picture.

The Vikings would then become a much more favorable matchup for the Giants.

But let’s just say the Falcons win AND the Seahawks lose.

If this game becomes meaningful for Minnesota, Peterson is going to play the entire game.  So the solution to a Giants victory here should be simple:

Run the ball.

The Vikings defense ranks in the top 10 in passing yards, and without OBJ, there’s really no point in testing that secondary.

The Giants defense isn’t very good against anything, but if you had to pick one strength, it’d be their run defense, which is ranked 21st overall in the league (114.6 per game). That’s just one spot behind the Vikings (112.9 yards per game).  Their best hope of winning this game would be keeping Peterson off the field.  They can do that if they control the clock, take away the run, and make Teddy Bridgewater beat them.

That’s much easier said than done, especially since Bridgewater is coming off the best game of his life.  But it was also against the Bears, and Bridgewater scares no one.

The Giants have been atrocious at managing the clock this season, so they’ll have to pull their heads out of their asses before it’s too late.  In case you haven’t heard, they’d have 10 wins if all of their games ended with 1:53 left.  But let’s not dwell on the abstract.

Why they’ll win the division:

Now assuming they win on Sunday and the Redskins lose, it will set up for an EPIC game for the last week of the season. But of course, they’ll need a little bit of luck on their side.

The 7-8 Giants would need to beat 7-8 Philly AND hope that the Cowboys can squeeze out a win against the Redskins. And if everything plays out the way we think, that’s exactly what’s going to happen.

It’s been a really rough season for Dallas. With Tony Romo healthy, the Cowboys are by far the best team in this division, and everyone knows it.

The Cowboys edged out a win against the Skins in Washington just three weeks ago, and they’ll be fired up at the chance to keep them out of the playoffs. This will be a game for pride regardless of the situation, and a great fuck-you moment to a division rival.

With that said, the stakes could not be higher for the Giants last regular season game against the Eagles.

Odell will be back, motivated, and ready to go. Tom Coughlin will be coaching for his job (and maybe Chip Kelly too), and the Giants will be fighting for a chance for another epic playoff run.

The chances are slim, but don’t count them out just yet.

Because it’s happened before, and it’s about to happen again.

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