Current Situation~ If everyone thinks something is a trap, is it a trap? The Giants are 4-8, currently sitting as the 13th seed in the NFC playoff seeding…they’re essentially dead. Should they win out, they’d be 9-8 and likely would need help to make the playoffs. That said, they did finish 9-7-1 last year and beat Minnesota in the Wild Card round to be the surprise of the NFL. The Packers have a chance to kill the Giants for the 2023 season, even if not mathematically.

Green Bay on the other hand is one of the hottest teams in the NFL, and much of that is to do with the kids getting reps (been advocating for this all this season and next), and beginning to gel. The Packers currently sit as the 7th seed in the NFC playoffs, and would travel to Dallas should the playoffs start today. The Packers actually have some wiggle room, but with Detroit losing in Chicago yesterday, Green Bay has an outside shot at winning the division. If Green Bay is able to win out (finish 11-6), they’d need another 2 losses by Detroit, which is possible. However, first things first…beat NY.

Matchup

As always, the matchup chart (above) shows the potential mismatches in an upcoming game. There should be 2 things that stand out…first, the Giants possess, arguably, the worst offense in the entire NFL. They’re dead last in passing and total yards, while scoring the 2nd least amount of points (Patriots- 13.0). Second, the Packers have a below-average defense, in terms of yardage, yet top-10 in scoring – meaning Green Bay does a good job keeping teams out of the end zone. The dreaded Bend but Don’t Break method…that’s truly it, because the Packers are tied for 27th in taking the ball away, so that’s not it.

Players to Watch

Lawrence is a stud. Simply put. He’s relatively unknown outside of the the East coast, but this guy can flat out play. He’s also huge. I’ll leave it to former Packers Pro Bowl Guard, Mike Wahle, to explain what makes Lawrence special. Much like Chris Jones on the Chiefs, Lawrence can wreck a game, and he may do it without registering a statistic. Much like Aaron Donald, he’ll require the Packers’ offensive line to account for him every snap. They’ll also need to know when he’s not on the field as that will change the entire approach to attacking the defense.

The Packers are going to be missing quite a bit of star power in this one…while they’re used to it, it’d be nice to have Quay Walker (one of the best ILBs in the NFL) in the middle, let alone one of the best corners in the NFL in Jaire to play (missing a 5th straight game).

Everyone knows Saquon Barkley, and holding him down will be priority #1, but their homegrown Tommy “Cutlets” DeVito. He’s quarterbacked them to consecutive wins and come in, like Green Bay, feeling good. This should be a good matchup tonight. That, and the Giants are wearing their 80’s/90’s throwbacks, which are always great.

Predictions

This will be a close game, hard fought, and will come down to the 4th quarter and Green Bay will come through, this time. Think similar to Week 2 vs. New Orleans…Green Bay came back from 17-0 in the 4th, and still needed a stop to ice the game – same thing tonight, I think…

Packers 27 (-5.5)
Giants 24

Season: 4-8
Overall: 91-60