Post by plax on Oct 20, 2012 17:53:30 GMT -5
Sunday, October 21st ; 1:00 PM EST ; Metlife Stadium
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Top 5 Players to Watch
Washington:
5 - Tyler Polumbus - Even though Trent Williams will be predicted to get most of the Giants pressure as he has JPP and Osi coming his way, Polumbus will still have to deal with Tuck and Tracy (who has been a nice surprise for the Gmen when Tuck goes to the sideline). Polumbus must protect his side if he wants the passing game to flourish.
4 - London Fletcher - Fletcher has been a model of consistency during the coarse of his storied career. The Giants running game has found its mojo and have been running wild on teams, including the 49ers, who have a top run defense. Fletcher is key in shutting down the NYGs run game this week.
3 - Josh Wilson - Wilson will have a big task this week of covering two of the top WRs in the game today. If he can at least contain the WRs, WAS can hopefully make the Giants' time on offense difficult and get the ball back to top rookie Robert Griffin III.
2 - Alfred Morris - Alfred Morris has been one of the biggest surprises this year, and has been instrumental in RG3's success. The Giants are not great against the run, but they did shut down Frank Gore last week. If Morris can get it going, WAS will be much better on offense.
1 - Trent Williams - Williams has the task of stopping JPP and Osi on separate occasions. When RG3 has time to throw the ball, WAS is deadly, so Williams will have to be on top of his game so WAS can win this big division game.
New York:
5 - Ahmad Bradshaw - I can speak for every Giants fan that Ahmad Bradshaw has been a difference maker in this Giants offense. Not only are we getting healthier, but our guys are playing better. When Ahmad is running well, we are controlling the game. If he can break down a weak WAS D, the Giants can do big things on offense.
4 - Justin Tuck - Tuck has not had much on the stat sheets, but he has been pretty good as of late, especially in San Francisco. He pressured Alex Smith all game, and was a big factor. If he can set the edge and make RG3 throw a ball he is not comfortable with, the Giants can get the ball back into Eil's hands.
3 - Michael Boley - There has been a lot of talk about leaving a spy out on the field to watch RG3, and I think it would be good for the Giants to do just that. Boley has been great for us this year, and if he can make sure RG3 does not try to run, he will have a lot of success.
2 - Victor Cruz - Cruz has been great this year, and is one of the most targeted receivers in the NFL. He has consistently been Eli Manning's go-to receiver, and the same should go for this week, too. He should be able to get past the WAS CBs all day, and help Eli spread the ball around.
1 - Jason Pierre-Paul - JPP has been a straight-out beast this year. As for most of the Giants pass rush, the stats have simply not been there on the stat sheet, but they have created an abundance of pressure on QBs week in and week out. He should be able to get to RG3, but the question for me is, how much?
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Keys to the Game
Washington:
3 - Play smart. - The last time WAS did not play smart on offense, RG3 wound up with a concussion, something they do not want and cannot afford to happen again. The Giants have strived off of turnovers the past couple of weeks. WAS must play safe.
2 - Watch Cruz.- Even though the Giants have about 5 targets that Eli can go to and feel confident about, Cruz is by far the most reliable for the Giants. If WAS has NY on a 3rd down, they better be watching Cruz or else the chains will be moving all night.
1 - Give RG3 time. - Give him time, he will hurt you. If the OLine can protect Griffin from getting hit, he can do great things for the offense and really give NY a hard time.
New York:
3 - Field position. - The return game of David Wilson (and Rueben Randle to an extent) has given the Giants something they have not had since Hixon in '08 (I believe): a return game. When Eli gets a short field to work with, he is flawless and will most likely end up leaving the field with getting the Giants some points (whether 3 or 7). If Wilson can get good returns, the Giants will be almost impossible to stop.
2 - Get to Griffin.- As stated earlier, when RG3 has time to throw, he is amazing. The Giants pass rush must get to RG3 in order to force him to make mistakes. If they can give him a long day, the Giants' chances of winning gets that much better.
1 - Balance. - There has been a major reason as to why the Giants have been as good as they have been the past 2 weeks, and that is the balance they have had on offense. If Eli can spread the field with the passing game and the running game can open up the passing game, the Giants will be very hard to stop.
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Sean's Key Battles:
Hixon vs. Redskins Secondary -
Nicks is getting closer to 100% and that means less snaps for Hixon. Why is he in this segment? He managed to produce a total of 78 yards on 6 targets, catching 4 of those with a long of 39 yards early in the game to set up a Cruz touchdown. The phenomenal part of all of this is that he was only in for 24 snaps. The 32nd ranked pass defense is going to need to find a way to not only stop the Nicks and Cruz show but how to handle Nixon as well in the 3 WR sets if they want to stop Eli.
Justin Tuck vs. Tyler Polumbus -
Tuck has had a lackluster season up until the 49ers game where he recorded 1 QB hit and 6 hurries, which one of them caused Alex Smith to step up in the pocket and throw his first INT of the game. Polumbus ranks as the #43 OT in the league allowing 18 total pressures on 202 pass blocking snaps. Look for Tuck to keep his momentum going as he will attempt to force RG3 in the other direction and into the arms of JPP.
David Wilson vs. Redskins Special Teams -
There's honestly nothing else interesting to talk about on this subject except David Wilson. He seems to be creeping up closer and closer to the opponent's endzone each week. If the Redskins want to win this game with as bad of a defense they have, keeping Wilson behind the Giants 30 yard line will help tremendously.
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Plax's Predictions:
Stat Predictions:
Eli Manning - 384 passing yards, 4 TDs.
Ahmad Bradshaw - 19 ATT, 102 rush yards. 1 REC, 13 rec yards. 0 TDs.
Andre Brown - 7 ATT, 34 rush yards. 0 TDs.
David Wilson - 4 ATT, 27 rush yards. 3 REC, 22 rec yards. 102 RET yards. 0 TDs.
Victor Cruz - 10 REC, 142 rec yards, 2 TDs.
Hakeem Nicks - 5 REC, 72 rec yards. 1 TD.
Domenik Hixon - 6 REC, 70 rec yards. 0 TDs.
Martellus Bennett - 2 REC, 31 rec yards, 0 TDs.
Defense:
Sacks: Jason Pierre-Paul x2. Osi Umenyiora, Justin Tuck & Mathias Kiwanuka x1
TOs: Michael Boley FR x1
* FR = rumble recovery
Game Expectations:
This week, many are saying we will lose because even Rex Grossman beat us twice last year. This is true, but the Giants are a better team, and the WAS defense is worse than last year's. I honestly cannot see the WAS secondary stopping Cruz and Nicks. And this will open up a lot of holes for Ahmad Bradshaw, Andre Brown, and David Wilson. WAS will hold their own, but Eli will just be too much for the up-and-coming Redskins, and will advance to 5-2.
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Sean's Predictions:
Stat Predictions:
Eli Manning - 23/35, 321 pass yards, 2 TDs, 0 INTs.
Robert Griffin III - 20/28, 243 pass yards, 1 TD 1 INT. 64 rush yards. 1 TD
Game Expectations:
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Madden 13's Predictions:
Stat Predictions:
Robert Griffin III - 15-26, 207 pass yards. 0 TDs, 0 INTS.
Alfred Morris - 16 ATT, 122 rush yards. 1 TD.
Santana Moss - 4 REC, 48 rec yards. 0 TDs.
Eli Manning - 19-27, 290 pass yards. 2 TDs, 0 INTS.
Ahmad Bradshaw - 15 ATT, 102 rush yards. 1 TD.
Victor Cruz - 4 REC, 93 rec yards. 1 TD.
Game Analysis:
With the Redskins only a game back of the defending Super Bowl champs in the always brutal NFC East standings, this week's showdown could set the tone for how the division eventually shakes out. And with so much on the line, you know Eli Manning is going to step-up big time, throwing for 290 yards and two touchdowns in the Giants 34-20 victory. Ahmad Bradshaw adds 102 yards on the ground for the G-Men, as they hold rookie sensation RG3 to 207 yards passing and only one rushing touchdown to pickup the huge win.
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