NFL Playoff Predictions: Why Eli Manning, New York Giants Can Make a Deep Run

It's been an odd year for the NFC East. The New York Giants won the division at 9-7, while the Philadelphia Eagles and Dallas Cowboys finished 8-8 and after a 3-1 start, the Washington Redskins fell from grace to finish 5-11.

Fortunately, it's not the worst of divisions—that title belongs to the AFC West—however, being that the Giants were swept by Washington and lost to Seattle at home, New York has some work to do in the postseason.

Sitting as the NFC's No. 4 seed, here are reasons why The Big Blue Wrecking Crew can make a deep postseason run.

Experience

Although past performance is no guarantee of future success, it certainly helps to have had success as opposed to not.

The 2007 New York Giants got in the playoffs as the NFC's No. 5 seed and went on to win three straight road games (four if you count the Super Bowl). The final three playoff teams they beat (Dallas, Green Bay, New England) were opponents who beat the Giants in the regular season.

So, there was some revenge at stake also.

A year later in 2008, the Giants choked as the NFC's No. 1 seed, however, that was Big Blue's most recent postseason game, so the loss has been lingering for a few years now.

2011 has an eerily similar feel as 2007 though, as a win over Atlanta in the Wild Card Round puts them against a regular-season opponent in either Green Bay or San Francisco (both of which beat New York).

And if the New Orleans Saints win in the Wild Card and divisional rounds, then a rematch with The Big Easy happens for a trip to Super Bowl XLVI.

A team with no playoff experience (such as the Houston Texans) is looking for something to prove. But, a team with playoff experience, such as the Giants, knows it can prove the skeptics wrong.

The difference lies in having the confidence of "been there and done that," so to speak. 

Pass Rush

Much like their 2007 team led by Michael Strahan, the 2011 New York Giants have an excellent pass rush that can take over games.

With a great set of rushers in Justin Tuck, Chris Canty, Osi Umenyiora and Jason Pierre-Paul, Big Blue recorded 48 sacks in 2011, tied for third in the NFL (Baltimore). In addition, the G-Men have forced 16 fumbles and recovered 11 of them.

Led by Pierre-Paul with 16.5 sacks, Osi finished with nine and both Tuck and Canty combined for nine.

It may not seem like a lot, but Tuck also missed four games and Umenyiora missed seven games. Had both been healthy enough to play a full season, the Giants would have led the NFL in sacks, and everyone would have been in double-digits.

Well, all four played in the regular-season finale against Dallas, and they combined for five sacks en route to a 31-14 win.

That kind of dominance is what can keep the Giants in games, because Eli Manning and the offense can score with anyone.

Victor Cruz

The unknown target at the beginning of the season, Eli Manning's favorite receiver Victor Cruz is the newest version of Lou Gehrig playing for Wally Pipp.

With Domenik Hixon going down in mid-September, Victor Cruz's season really began against Philadelphia in Week 3.

There, Cruz only caught three passes, but they went for 110 yards and two were TDs. Only one game since has Victor slowed down (Buffalo, Week 6), and by season's end he accounted for 1,536 receiving yards on 82 receptions while scoring nine TDs.

His 18.7 yards per catch ties for third in the league, and it's obvious who will be Eli's go-to man in January. Worst-case scenario also, though, is that Cruz draws a double-team on virtually every play.

On the contrary to the opposing defense, that just bodes well for the rest of New York's offense. Whether it's Eli's reliable tight end Jake Ballard, the improving (health-wise) running game or Manning's other receivers.

Cruz is the man in The Big Apple right now, and any defense against New York needs a flawless game plan to shut its offense down.

Pass Protection

This season, Eli Manning was sacked just 28 times, which ranked No. 26 in the league. Only Drew Brees of New Orleans and Matt Ryan of Atlanta were sacked less among NFC playoff QBs.

The difference between Eli and those two, however, comes in the form of their 2011 opponents.

See, the NFC South isn't known for having dominant pass-rushers. Sure, John Abraham of Atlanta and Charles Johnson of Carolina are solid, but they pale in comparison to the NFC East.

Teams like Washington have Brian Orakpo, Ryan Kerrigan and Adam Carriker, while Philadelphia has Trent Cole and Justin Babin. Move to Dallas, where DeMarcus Ware and Anthony Spencer reside, and this is arguably the best set of pass-rushers in any one division.

Now, include the Giants having to play the 49ers, Jets and Dolphins (all of which have strong front-sevens), and Eli Manning getting sacked just 28 times this season is almost unfathomable.

This kind of production from an offensive line is crucial come January, so don't be surprised when Eli continues to have time in the pocket—which then transitions into dialing up points and defenses.

Recent History

When the Arizona Cardinals made a run at the Super Bowl, it was the 2008 NFL season, and they had won the NFC West with a 9-7 record.

Getting the No. 4 seed, no one believed the Cardinals had any legit shot at making a run, however, Arizona defied the odds and came within one possession of taking home the Lombardi Trophy.

In other recent NFL playoff history, the Packers won it all last season as the No. 6 seed. Green Bay then became the seventh Wild Card team to win the Super Bowl.

With the Pittsburgh Steelers winning it in 2005 and then the Giants in 2007 before that, that's three Wild Card champions in the last six seasons. So, not only are the odds increased for any team without a playoff bye, but it's almost becoming the norm.

Think about winning to get into the playoffs. That team then begins to catch fire, and those who rested their starters in Week 17 and/or had a bye week may be fresh but are not in rhythm.

When Arizona made a run, it had won its Week 17 game, and the blaze began. Same with Green Bay in 2010 (won in Week 17 to get in) and thus far, the same for the 2011 Giants (needed to win to get in).

All that being said, the odds for Big Blue are not nearly as low as most believe.

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