NY Giants vs. Panthers Game Overview
By Andrew Santoro
The NY Giants are in preparation for this Sunday’s, upcoming battle with The Carolina Panthers at MetLife Stadium…a playoff birth riding on every snap. It also appears as if the Giants have drawn the NFL’s top team at the best possible time, with Tight End Greg Olsen listed as questionable (sprained knee) and running back Jonathan Stewart listed as out.
Its is plain to see that Cam Newton is having the best year of his young career, but if you look at the stat line, all of Cam’s worst games have come when Stewart and the O-Line could not establish the run, greatly impacting Ron Rivera’s offensive game plan.
Even with the chance of Cam Newton’s number one receiving target Greg Olsen’s possibility to play, it would be hard to imagine him being a dominant threat having sustained a knee injury last Sunday. Due too Stewart’s injury, look to see increased workload rookie running back Cameron Artis-Payne, who has not seen much action this season being inactive for the majority of the year.
The Panthers dominating defense, is the major story line of the day, and will corner back, Josh Norman’s match up with Wide Receiver Odell Beckham Jr? Two of the up and coming stars of the NFL, Beckham appearing to play his best when matched up against top tier DB like Norman.
However, the spotlight also seems to shine on Carolina’s Line backing corps anchored by Luke Kuechly, Thomas Davis and first round draft pick Shaq Thompson. The fierce bunch not only dominates the run, but are some of the best coverage LBs in the league. So it maybe a bit harder for Eli to dump it off to un-drafted rookie free agent Will Tye, as Manning has become accustomed over the past few weeks.
Eli will also have to keep an eye on Defensive Tackle Kawann Short, a 6 foot 3, 315 pounder with nine sacks on the year, three since the calendar has rolled over to December. Fans should worry about the Giants injury plagued, inconsistent O-Line against some the leagues best.
In closing if the NY Giants can stick to the game plan, capitalize with quick passes to assist the O-Line, remain balanced and win the turnover battle. They will have a fighting chance against the only undefeated team remaining in The NFL, to stay alive in the playoff race.
@andrewbedlam