Patriots Defense vs. Giants Offense:
Vince Wilfork must dominate:
If they can get pressure up the middle on Manning, they force him to move in the pocket and throw outside. No brainer, right? The acquisition of David Baas was supposed to solidify the center spot for the Giants O-Line, however, he’s been banged up and if he isn’t 100%, Wilfork will wreak havoc…or worse, he’ll draw attention from the guards and/or runningbacks allowing Marc Anderson or Rob Nikovich to come free.
Take Away Victor Cruz:
Nicks and Manningham are great outside, along with Cruz, but if the Pats are able to take away the middle by getting to Eli, you take away a huge part of Cruz’s game. The Giants love to have Cruz in the slot. If he gets a free release, their timing plays are almost indefensible. I would expect the Pats to either double cover him or work an in and out zone taking away Cruz’s 3rd down route of faking out and hooking in. Manning loves this on third down and the ball is often out of his hands before the break. If the Pats can get a chip on him and work in and out, the Giants may not have their typical 3rd down success.
Stay away from Cover 2:
Eli is as good as it gets in recognizing defenses and I can only imagine how much he’ll be licking his chops if he sees 2 deep. Eli’s ability to hit the soft part of the zone with a back shoulder throw is amazing. He’s outstanding at looking off safeties which will allow the soft part to materialize (the part behind the corner and just in front of the safety) and that makes for great success against the Cover 2.
Don’t forget about Hakeem Nicks:
Victor Cruz has stolen the show and is sure to draw plenty of attention from the Patriots. The Pats secondary has been a sieve all year and if Nicks is left in single coverage, he’ll win every time.
Eli must be smart with the ball:
Duh, another no brainer, right? Last year, Eli threw 25 interceptions and was sacked a career low 16 times. This year the inverse of last year has happened, Manning has just 16 interceptions, but has been sacked 28 times, an indication he’s taking the sack instead of throwing it up for grabs. Keep the trend going and you might be one up on big bro Peyton.
Giants Defense vs. Patriots Offense:
Get Wes Welker a free release:
Much of the Patriots offense is based on timing, if Welker gets a free release, he’ll eat up yardage quickly. Welker’s (along with Tom Brady’s) ability to recognize weak spots in the zone is a direct reason why Welker is a perennial 100 catch receiver. Take away the timing and Brady has to look outside to his lead-footed receivers and runningbacks.
Stop the run:
I know, the Patriots are a passing team, however, the Giants allow 5.4 yards per carry. By stopping the run, you essentially take away a huge part of Brady’s game: the play action. If the Giants can trust their keys and stay honest, their secondary just might give that dominant front four an extra second to get to Tom Brady.
Win the turnover game:
Eli is good for a pick a game and serves up opportunities for more, that’s common knowledge, but if the Giants can produce turnovers, Brady has been known to let it effect his game.
Get pressure up the middle on Brady:
The Giants have a great edge rush, but what got them the Super Bowl ring in 2007-08 was the defensive line’s ability to get in Brady’s face. Brady’s not very mobile, is much worse outside of the pocket and gets rattled.
Special Teams:
Win special teams:
A third of all football games are decided on special teams. Side bar; 90% of all statistics can be made to say anything you want…50% of the time. On a serious note, neither the Giants nor the Patriots would be here if it wasn’t for miscues by their conference championship opponents on special teams. In a nutshell, special teams are of the utmost importance.