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Giants (11-7) vs Niners (14-3)
Last week the 49ers took on the New Orleans Saints
at Candlestick Park and came away with a 36-32 win when Alex Smith hit Vernon
Davis with a last-minute (nine seconds left) touchdown pass. The fourth quarter
lead had changed hands four times in this hard fought battle. The next day the
49ers got a chance to recover and enjoy the playoff game between the Giants and
Packers to see who they would be playing next.
The Giants beat the defending
Super Bowl champion Green Bay Packers 37-20 at Lambeau Field. Not only did the
Giants have to overcome the top-seeded 15-1 team playing in their home stadium,
but they had to survive some bad calls by the refs as well. Both the Giants and
49ers are happy with the outcomes as far as opponents go. The Giants didn't want
to play in the Superdome and the 49ers didn't want to travel and play in Green
Bay. San Francisco 49ers.
With
records like 7-9, 2-10, 4-12, 7-9, 5-11, 7-9, 8-8, 6-10, they haven't been exciting
for a number of years. You have to look back 14 seasons to find where the 49ers
reached and hosted an NFC Championship game and they lost that one 23-10 to the
Green Bay Packers. We reported on the 49ers a few weeks ago when they played the
Giants at Candlestick
Park. They were 7-1, on a six game win streak and continued it by beating
the Giants 27-20.
The Giants went on to
lose the next three games against the Eagles, Saints and Packers. The 49ers beat
Arizona the following week and then ran smack into a Baltimore brick wall where
they lost 16-6. The Ravens sacked Alex Smith 9 times even having to play the game
without linebacker Ray Lewis. They said they were happy to draw the Giants for
this game. If they are successful, which team do you think they'd rather face
in the Super Bowl, the Raven or the Patriots? Niners
offense.
It doesn't matter how many
times Alex Smith throws the ball, his top number of completions hovers around
20 per game. That was up until last week when Smith threw for a season high 42
passes, completing 24 for 299 yards, over a hundred more than his average, for
3 touchdowns and with no interceptions. The workhorse quarterback even ran the
ball 28 yards for a touchdown. It's interesting to note that only 7 of Smith's
24 completions made it into the hands of wide receivers, while tight end Vernon
Davis and running back Frank Gore pulled in 7 each. Gore caught every one tossed
his way and also ran the ball 13 times for 89 yards. That should tell you how
this offense runs, and how careful you have to be watching who comes off the front
line. Smith was able to scramble a few times on the Giants the last time they
met, so they'll have to watch that too. Niners
defense
This defense is ranked 2nd in the
NFL in points allowed and at the very top in stopping the run. Teams average just
over 77 yards a game against them and though the Giants hit them for 93 last time
out, it was at a pace of only 3.2 yards per carry. Including the postseason and
all the regular season games, teams have been able to score a rushing touchdown
against this tough group only 3 times. This hard hitting defense tied for the
league lead in creating 38 takeaways and had five in last week's playoff game.
They have 42 sacks, with a team leading 14 belonging to first round pick Aldon
Smith, who came just one short of breaking the NFL rookie sack record.
Last
game against the Giants the 49ers didn't pressure Eli Manning, sacking him just
once, while focusing more on covering his receivers. Carlos Rogers intercepted
Manning twice and made his confident comments -- "You can get the Eli that throws
for 300 or 400 yards, and you also can get the Eli that throws picks." Now
Manning has thrown just 1 interception and 9 touchdowns in the last three games,
but this defense will be hard to crack. They have a real
good pass rush, top notch linebackers and very good coverage in the secondary.
Giants offense.
The
last time Eli Manning faced off against the 49ers he threw for 311 yards and 2
touchdowns. The down side of that was the 2 interceptions, and then losing in
the final minute when his fourth-down game-tying pass from the 10-yard line was
batted down. Manning was hot last week in Green Bay, throwing for 330 yards, and
3 touchdowns against 1 interception, and this offense will go all out to win.
It was evidenced by Manning's Hail Mary pass to Hakeem Nicks, who finished up
with 7 receptions for 165 yards and 2 touchdowns. The line did their job as Manning
was sacked only once, but they still struggle establishing the ground game.
It's not consistent at all, but there were big runs by Ahmad Bradshaw and Brandon
Jacobs. Bradshaw did not play the last time these teams met and let's realize
that when the regular season ended, even while improving, the Giants were dead
last in the NFL in rushing yards per game (89.2) and per carry (3.5). Meanwhile
the 49ers were first in rushing defense per game (77.3) and per attempt (3.5)
and they held the Saints to 37 yards last week. This might be another "Manning
has to do it all with his arm game". After all, Drew Brees was able to throw
for 435 yards on the 49ers last week. Giants
defense.
Stop Frank Gore from running and
catching. Stop tight end Vernon Davis from making his catches. Stop Alex Smith
from continuing to improve on every game. That's all they have to do. No small
task, but in the last three games they have been successful against tight ends
like Jason Witten, Tony Gonzalez, and Jermichael Finley.
The last time they
faced the 49ers Michael Boley had to leave the game and without their top defensive
play caller the game turned. The Giants have since strengthened the defense by
picking up Chase Blackburn who was also their special teams captain last year.
Boley has been back and playing better than ever, even recording 2 sacks last
week along with Osi Umenyiora who also had 2. This
defense is good at disguising their looks, and over the last two playoff games
they have recorded 6 sacks and 12 quarterback hits and the longest pass completion
was by Aaron Rodgers for just 21 yards. The
49ers have given up 44 sacks on the season and the Giants will be coming. Overall.
These
two teams have very different styles. If you look at top receivers, Victor Cruz
has over 650 more receiving yards and 5 more touchdowns than Michael Crabtree.
Nicks is next on the Giants side and he has 400 yards and 1 touchdown more than
Vernon Davis, who as a tight end, is their next best receiver. On the other hand,
49ers running back Frank Gore has just about as many yards as both Bradshaw and
Jacobs combined. Add in their second running back Hunter and the 49er total is
over 450 more rushing yards. Which style of offense wins out
and which defense is stronger? We do know this. With the Giants win over the Packers
last week, they are the only playoff team to win a rematch after having regular
season loss. They're also the only playoff team to have a win on the road. They're
breaking all the 'rules' and in this NFC Championship game against the 49ers you
have to root for them to do it again.
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Notes.
Giants Eli Manning was the top pick in the
2004 draft. Giants are 4-0 all-time
in conference championships, including a win over the the 49ers on Jan. 20, 1991. 49ers
Alex Smith was the top pick in the 2005 draft. 49ers
Alex Smith has thrown only 5 interceptions all season. 49ers
Vernon Davis last week had 7 catches for 180 yards, the most yards receiving by
a tight end in a playoff game. 49ers
have gone 17 seasons since they won their fifth Super Bowl. 49ers
last week played in and won their first playoff game in 9 years.
Next Game
Feb 5 - If the Giants win they will advance
to the Super Bowl.
Giants
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