On Monday Night Football, the Giants head back home after their bye week. The rest has allowed them to recuperate after a disappointing start to the season. However, just before the bye, they won two games in a row. This has boosted the morale around the locker room and has grown their confidence. To keep things going, the Giants must get past a Packers team that is also playing good football right now.
The Packers also started the year out in a disappointing fashion. They went 2-5 in their first seven games and quarterback Jordan Love wasn’t playing up to the franchise’s usual standards when it comes to the position. Since then though, they’ve gone 4-1 and put themselves in wild card contention. Love has also played well and has taken command of the offense. Believe it or not, with a couple more wins in a row, the Giants could join the Packers in the hunt for a playoff berth. To do that, the Giants must hurt the Packers where they’ve been thriving.
How the Giants Can Upset the Green Bay Packers
Keep the Turnovers Coming
Something that the Giants have done well in the past couple of games has been creating turnovers and opportunities for the offense. Against the Commanders in Week 11, the Giants forced six separate Washington turnovers. Those turnovers were created by three interceptions and three fumble recoveries. The following week, the Giants intercepted the Patriots twice and recovered one fumble. The defense has been balling lately and the increased productivity in the takeaway department has been a big key in that.
Going into a big game like this, the Giants have to bring that same energy under the lights. That’s especially the case when protecting the ball has been a strength for the Packers the last couple of weeks. During their three-game winning streak, the Packers haven’t allowed a single turnover. Quarterback Jordan Love has protected the ball and hasn’t put the team in any costly situations. That means the Giants’ defense has their work cut out for them on Monday Night. However, if they can rock Love’s boat and make some big plays, they will have a chance.
Getting Saquon Going Against the Packers’ Defense
The Giants run game, led of course by running back Saquon Barkley, has been the main focal point of the offense all season. Especially with the injuries at the quarterback position, the Giants have had to lean on Barkley to carry some of the load this season. He’s done a good job at doing that too, rushing for almost 700 yards in nine games. He does only have one rushing touchdown this season and you’d like to see that number go up. However, he does have four receiving touchdowns so he’s getting the job done in other places too.
Going up against a talented Packers’ defense line though will be a challenge for Barkley. Before last week’s game against the Chiefs, the Packers hadn’t given up more than 80 yards rushing to a single player. Last week though, Chiefs running back Isaiah Pacheco rushed for over 100 yards and scored a touchdown against the Packers. That showed that the defensive front seven of the Packers is at least vulnerable. They must pounce on that opportunity Monday Night and that will allow Giants quarterback Tommy DeVito to thrive in the play-action passing game. The offense needs a boost after only scoring 10 points in their win against the Patriots in Week 12. If Barkley can get moving on the ground, the rest of the offense will then get in a necessary groove.
Main Photo: Kevin Wexler – USA Today Sports
