There are some franchises that you expect to find in the NFL post-season. The Saints, Patriots, Steelers and Green Bay Packers come to mind. On the other hand, a couple of franchises seem to sneak in the back door and though they make for some good drama as the Cinderella teams, it is very rare that they enjoy a prolonged stay.
The top Cinderella team in this season's playoffs had to be the Tim Tebow-led Broncos. While Denver provided some solid entertainment with a win against a gimpy Steelers team, a dominant Patriots squad blew them out just a week later.
The Texans are another underdog story considering this was their first time they advanced to the playoffs in franchise history, but the injuries to their starting quarterback and star defensive end made it too difficult to overcome the Ravens' battle-proven defence.
Really, the last team standing in the underdog role is the Giants. While the 49ers may be the comeback story of the year thanks to the incredible turnaround experienced under coach Jim Harbaugh, no one expected the Giants to contend this season either. In fact, the Eagles and Cowboys were both picked ahead of them, with the Redskins even generating some interest after a strong Monday Night showing early in the season.
The Giants were not a popular pick after a downward spiral left them out of the playoffs in 2010 and there were few major moves in the off-season. In fact, the biggest moves involved players moving away from New York with dependable tight end Kevin Boss heading to Oakland and Steve Smith joining the rival Eagles via free agency.
What many football pundits seemed to forget is that Eli Manning is a battle-tested quarterback who has won a championship, and key defensive members of that 2008 championship team remain on the roster including Justin Tuck and Osi Umenyiora. Both Tuck and Umenyiora have struggled with injuries over the last two seasons, which helps explain the team's erratic play.
Just when head coach Tom Coughlin started to make the back pages of the New York tabloids with his job reportedly on the line, both Tuck and Umenyiora regained their health and the Giants started to play like a title contender again.
The headline of the regular season was certainly the breakout play of Victor Cruz, but the top billing in the playoffs so far has been Hakeem Nicks. Truth is, one would not have occurred if not for the other. When Smith left the Giants, there were some serious questions as to whether a strong second target would emerge for Manning to keep opposing defences honest in guarding Nicks.
While Mario Manningham was limited by injuries, Cruz enjoyed the greatest regular season in franchise history. He racked up 1,536 yards with nine touchdowns and suddenly defences were sticking multiple defenders on him. This worked beautifully to the Giants advantage in the first two rounds of the playoffs as Nicks dominated in single coverage with 13 receptions for 280 yards and four touchdowns.
The Giants were able to knock off the Packers with pressure on Rodgers and a near perfect game by Manning for a second straight week. While they have proven capable of knocking off top-flight offences in recent years, the challenge this weekend will be a dominant defence in San Francisco.
The 49ers can stop the run and put enough pressure on quarterbacks to force mistakes. That explained the collapse of Drew Brees and the Saints, who similar to Manning also came away with a Super Bowl championship in recent years (2010).
For the Giants to continue their unexpected path in the post-season, Manning will have to be flawless. The Giants' defence can get to 49ers quarterback Alex Smith and Frank Gore can be limited similar to how the G-Men took care of Falcons running back Michael Turner in the Wild Card matchup.
It's whether the Giants offence can limit their mistakes and stay ahead of the Niners offensively that will determine the game's outcome. The 49ers challenge lies in picking its poison between stopping Nicks or Cruz. Of course, an even better option would be getting to Manning before the wide receivers' routes can be ran, a strategy that resulted in a 27-20 win over the Giants Nov. 13 in San Francisco.
