The NFC Championship Game kicks off on Sunday afternoon at 6:30 PM EST and it's the New York Giants heading to the frozen tundra of Lambeau Field. The odds at Bookmaker.com are currently favoring the Green Bay Packers at -7 point. This should be an interesting game since everyone pretty much left the Giants for dead before the postseason began, and the Packers were supposed to be underdogs to the Dallas Cowboys, the team that the Giants knocked off last Sunday. There are contrasts starting at the quarterback spot where you have one of the best of all-time in Brett Favre, and Eli Manning. The lesser known of the NFL's first family of quarterbacks. These are two storied franchises with long and storied histories will play once again at historic Lambeau Field to decide who will go to the Super Bowl. It doesn't get much better than that.
You could say that a big reason that the Giants are playing in this game has been the development of Manning at quarterback. He seems more confident with each passing game, and while he's not putting up big numbers, he's just steadily guiding his team down the field, doing what's asked of him, and not creating turnovers. He hasn't thrown for more than 200 yards in the playoffs, but he's completing a high percentage and not throwing interceptions. It's been the defense that has played extremely well, holding both opponents to just two touchdowns. This Giant team isn't going to be scared away by having to play at Lambeau this weekend, they have no won nine straight games on the road, having lost only to Dallas in Week 1 of the season. The defense will have to continue to put pressure on the quarterback if the team wants to make it ten straight and earn their way to the Super Bowl.
Green Bay has come out of nowhere to become a powerhouse in the NFC once again. This team has gone 18-3 since last December and because of how the Cowboys played and the Pats unbelievable run, they ran pretty much under the radar all year. That's not the case anymore as last week's 42-20 win over Seattle showed that this team is for real. Of course Brett Favre plays a huge role in the team's success, mainly because he doesn't think he has to carry the bulk of the load anymore. The gunslinger days seem to be behind him as he is trusting his talented group of receivers and now he has a running back once again that can shoulder some of the load. Ryan Grant has been amazing the second half of the season, and last week he showed how tough he is. After fumbling twice in his first four touches, this guy came back and put up more than 200 yards on the ground. Defensively the secondary has a pair of shutdown corners, the linebackers are young and tough, and up front they can get to the quarterback. You have to like the way this team is playing.
The OVER/UNDER in the NFC Championship Game is 40.5 Total Points at Bookmaker.com.
Interesting Trends:
The Giants are 6-1 ATS over their last seven games.
New York has gone UNDER in five of their last seven games.
The Giants are 5-0 ATS in their last five road games.
The total has gone UNDER in 8 of the Giants' last nine road games.
New York is just 1-4 ATS in their last five games against the Packers.
Green Bay is 9-2 ATS in their last 11 games.
The Packers are 18-3 SU in their last 21 games.
Green Bay is 5-0 ATS in their last five home games.
The total has gone OVER in four of Green Bay's last five games at home.
Bookmaker.com has posted NFC Championship Game Betting Odds :
New York Giants +7
Green Bay Packers -7
Total is set at 42
Predicted Score:
New York Giants 17
Green Bay Packers 24
Make sure to get with Jeff Alexander’s Guaranteed Picks for the 2008 NFC Championship Game between the New York Giants vs Green Bay Packers.
