Five Giants to Watch in Wild Card Round
The New York Giants are playoff bound for the first time since the 2016 season, surpassing the expectations of many with their surprising 9-7-1 finish as the sixth seed in the NFC.
But all that the Giants have worked so hard for this season will now be put to the test in a playoff rematch against a team that snatched a win away from them in the dying seconds of their Week 16 matchup: the Minnesota Vikings.
The third-seeded Minnesota Vikings ended their 2022 campaign with a 13-4 record and come into this game as a sizeable favorite with their dynamic offensive attack and underrated defense.
That said, the Vikings have been volatile throughout this season, illustrating that firsthand in their nail-biting 27-24 win over the Giants three weeks ago. Though the Giants will return to Minnesota for their Wild Card clash, they still have what it takes to come away with a win. However, they will need the following five players/positions groups to deliver big performances for that goal to come to fruition.
RT Evan Neal
When you evaluate the campaign the seventh overall pick in the NFL Draft had, it’s certainly challenging not to notice the slide Evan Neal endured as the season progressed. Though he had some shaky games to start, mustering 16 pressures in his first seven games, it was when Neal returned from his knee injury during Week 13 that things started to take a turn for the worse.
This came to a boiling point against the Eagles in Week 14, when Neal allowed eight pressures, and against the Vikings in Week 16, where he gave up seven pressures, including a sack. Neal ended the 2022 season as the team leader in pressures (39), sacks (7), and hits (10), and he had the lowest pass-blocking efficiency rating (94.6) amongst all starting offensive linemen who played 360 snaps or more this season.
This Sunday, he will have to deal with the same opponents that gave him fits outside over Week 16 once more, and that is edge rushers Danielle Hunter and Za’Darius Smith. Smith, who finished fourth in the NFL in pressures (78), had ten sacks and two forced fumbles, which led him to secure his third Pro Bowl appearance. On the other hand, Hunter led the Vikings in sacks with 10.5 and finished seventh in pressures (70) in the NFL to go along with his 65 combined tackles.
The good news for Neal is that he’s managed to allow just three pressures in 55 pass coverage snaps over the last two games. But the Giants will need him to do much better on Sunday if Jones is to have a chance at finding his targets from the pocket.
ILB Landon Collins
Landon Collins has been quite the story this season. Five weeks into the 2022 campaign, the 29-year-old free agent was still without a team, looking for a chance to prove himself again. Meanwhile, the Giants, struggling to garner better pass coverage and tackling from their inside linebackers then, needed some help in the area and signed Collins to their practice squad before promoting him as a starter soon after.
Landon Collins
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Since his arrival, Collins has delivered just what the Giants have been searching for defensively despite having to play as an inside linebacker, which is not his main position. In the 160 snaps he played, Collins finished with 15 combined tackles, a sack, a 52-yard pick-six, two passes defended, and a reception percentage of 41.7 percent on 12 targets. For someone who was completely new to the system and joined mid-season, these numbers speak a lot more about how efficient Collins has been since his arrival.
This weekend, Collins figures to be called to help contain Vikings tight end T.J. Hockenson, who, in the first meeting against the Giants had two scores to go along with his 13 receptions for 109 yards.
QB Daniel Jones
Over the last six weeks of the regular season, quarterback Daniel Jones came into his own and hit his stride with his development, most evidently seen in Week 17 against the Colts. In that game alone, Jones completed 79.2 percent of his 24 pass attempts for 177 yards and two touchdowns, to go along with an additional 11 carries for 91 yards and two rushing touchdowns.
Though this was Jones’ best game of the season, this isn’t the only time he’s displayed his potential. In Week 16 against the Vikings, Jones had himself quite the day, completing 71.4 percent of 42 pass attempts for 334 yards and a touchdown.
Daniel Jones
Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports
The reason Jones was able to have so much success that day is largely due to how poor the Vikings pass coverage unit was. This season, the Vikings defense finished 31st in the league in passing yards allowed per game (265.6), 30th in yards per pass play (7.32), 30th in points allowed per game (25.1), 26th in first downs allowed (21.1), and were 21st in the red zone (57.14 percent).
Even with the injury-ridden wide receiver unit the Giants have, Jones has all the tools and talent around him to carve up the Vikings pass defense with another big game through the air.
Two defensive backs he will need to keep an eye for include cornerback Patrick Peterson and safety Harrison Smith. Each veteran Viking defensive back had five interceptions during the regular season, presenting Jones with the most dangerous ball-hawking tandem in the NFL. Jones committed the last interception in Week 16, taken away by none other than Peterson himself.
CBs Adoree’ Jackson & Fabian Moreau
The greatest set of offensive weapons and talent on the Vikings offense can be found in the wide receiver unit, with one man, in particular, leading the group: Justin Jefferson.
Jefferson had a career season that landed him his third trip to the Pro Bowl and will likely place him First Team All-Pro. In 17 games played this season, Jefferson finished first in the NFL in receptions (128), receiving yards (1,809), first amongst all wide receivers in yards after the catch (613), to go along with eight touchdown catches as well. In Week 16, Jefferson caught 12 of his 16 targets for 133 yards and a touchdown.
The Giants are hoping that cornerback Adoree’ Jackson will be able to return from his knee injury suffered in Week 11. In the first meeting with the Vikings, Fabian Moreau was tasked with slowing down Jefferson and had a tough time, allowing a season-high eight receptions on ten targets for 84 yards and a touchdown.
Jackson, on the other hand, was having a good season before his MCL sprain. He's been limited in practice each of the last three weeks, and there is a question about how much rust he might have if he plays. But the Giants might just be willing to live with that, as in the ten games he was able to play this season, Jackson produced some sharp numbers, posting a team-high 53.7% reception percentage while only allowing two touchdowns on a total of 54 targets.
Giants Pass Rush
One factor many like to applaud of the new defensive regime under defensive coordinator Wink Martindale is his emphasis on blitzing to apply pressure, which in all fairness, has worked quite effectively. But ever since the return of Azeez Ojulari in Week 13, the Giants defense hasn’t needed to rely as much on blitzing because of how dominant their pass rush has been by itself.
The success this Giants pass rush has been able to garner has been a group effort, with several key defensive linemen coming into play. At the helm of the Giants pass rush production sits first-time Pro Bowler Dexter Lawrence II.
Lawrence truly set the bar for himself this season, producing a career and team-high in pressures (63), hits (22), and sacks (7.5). Along with Lawrence, Ojulari has also been quite the impressive story this season. Despite playing in just seven games due to a calf injury, Ojulari still produced incredibly well, placing first on the team in forced fumbles (3) and second in sacks (5.5).
But rounding out the Giants' pass rush has been fifth overall rookie sensation Kayvon Thibodeaux, who, despite spraining his MCL during preseason (which led him to miss the first two weeks of the season), still managed to produce admirably well as the season progressed. In the 14 games Thibodeaux played, he placed second on the team in pressures (40), third in sacks (4), and finished with two forced fumbles, one of which he returned for a touchdown.
In short, what makes this playoff matchup enticing for the Giants pass rush is twofold. The first comes down to the Vikings offensive line, which has been one shaky unit all season. Leading the league with the most pressures allowed (212), the Vikings offensive line was also first in hits allowed (59) and second in sacks (37).
This leads to how Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins performs under pressure. In 198 pass attempts under pressure, Cousins only completed 51.5 percent of his throws and committed four interceptions. Cousins and this offense could be in plenty of trouble if the Giants break through on Sunday.
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