Deja Blue!!!

The Giants are one win away from the Super Bowl after beating the Green Bay Packers 37-20 at Lambeau Field Sunday

The Giants are going to the NFC Championship game next Sunday after beating the top seeded Green Bay Packers 37-20 at Lambeau Field. Eli Manning proved the doubters wrong once again by managing the game and making the big plays when they mattered most. Manning finished the game 21-33 for 330 yards and 3 touchdowns and one interception. The Giants were all business on Sunday, opening the game with a 13 play, 67 yard drive that lasted 6:27 and resulted in a Lawrence Tynes field goal. Green Bay answered with a 47-yard field goal from Mason Crosby to tie the game at three, but the Giants answered back when Eli Manning hit Hakeem Nicks on a 66-yard touchdown pass to put the Giants back up 10-3 at the end of the first quarter. The Packers quickly tied the game at ten early in the second quarter, when Aaron Rodgers found John Kuhn for an 8-yard touchdown scamper into the end zone. The Giants kicked a 23-yard field goal from Lawrence Tynes to take a 13-10 lead with 3:37 left in the second and it appeared as though the Giants were going to take a 13-10 lead into halftime. The Giants got the ball back with 0:41 left in the half and rather than attempting a 47 yard field goal, Eli Manning launched a Hail Mary pass that was pulled down by Hakeem Nicks as time expired. Nicks finished the day with 7 receptions for 165 yards and 2 touchdowns. The touchdown stunned the Packers and gave the Giants a 20-10 halftime lead.

The Packers were their own worst enemies, losing three fumbles, including one by Rodgers himself. Aaron Rodgers wasn't particularly sharp as he was 26 of 46 for 264 yards, throwing two touchdowns and one interception. He was also sacked four times by the Giants pass rush. Green Bay looked out of sync and never seemed to find their stride. Receivers missed key opportunities to capitalize on blown Giants coverages, dropping wide open passes. The Green Bay defense failed to make critical stops when they needed to and never got that big turnover they relied on so heavily in the regular season. Still, as good as the Giants were in the first half, they began to wane in the second half. The Giants held the ball for a total of 3:26 in the third quarter and failed to record a first down. The Packers put together a 10 play, 63 yard drive that resulted in a 35-yard Mason Crosby field goal that cut the Giants lead to 20-13.

The Giants finally awoke from their slumber in the fourth quarter. With Green Bay driving down the field, Michael Boley and Osi Umenyiora sacked Aaron Rodgers on a key fourth and five to regain possession. Lawrence Tynes hit a 35-yard field goal to extend the Giants lead to 23-13 with 7:48 left to play. Green Bay started the ensuing drive on their own 29. Aaron Rodgers hit Ryan Grant with a short pass on first down, but was stripped of the ball by Kenny Phillips, which Chase Blackburn recovered and ran the ball back forty yards all the way to the Packers four yard line. Eli Manning then hit Mario Manningham in the end zone to make it 30-13, all but sealing the Packers fate. The Packers would drive down the field quickly with Rodgers finding Donald Driver in the end zone, cutting the Giants lead to 30-20, but the resilient Giants never panicked, as they came right back and scored with 2:37 left on a 14-yard touchdown run by Brandon Jacobs, making it 37-20, Giants.

The Giants (11-7) have now won their last two playoff games in Lambeau Field, the last game being the 2007 NFC Championship game, when they beat Brett Favre and the Packers 23-20 in overtime. The Giants will now head out to San Francisco, where they will play the 49ers next Sunday at 6:30 PM. If the Giants win, they will reach the Super Bowl for the second time in the last five years, while Giants fans everywhere are beginning to think this just might be 2007 all over again.