Falcons vs. Giants: 5 Halftime Adjustments for New York

Here we are. Falcons-Giants with one half of football left to determine which team will advance to play next week, and which team's offseason starts today.

Career, Tom Coughlin is 8-7 in the postseason. Falcons coach Mike Smith is 0-2. Does that make you more or less confident about the second half, Giants fans?

The game is on a razer's edge right now. Here are 5 adjustments New York should make to get a big playoff win.

1. Keep juggling the defensive line.

With Justin Tuck, Osi Umenyiora and Jason Pierre-Paul all healthy, New York has a legit three-headed monster at defensive end. Perry Fewell's job is not only to keep all three guys fresh and effective, but also to use them in novel and unexpected ways.

Remember Super Bowl XLII? The Patriots never did figure out how to block Strahan, Umenyiora and Tuck all at once, especially with all three guys moving around and stunting off each other.

If Fewell can find the right combinations today, he can give Matt Ryan fits in the second half.

2. Stay with the run.

Winter in New Jersey can be a bad place to throw the ball. No one knows that better than Eli Manning and Tom Coughlin. Eli has surprised many this year with his passing prowess, but today isn't the day to get greedy.

Atlanta's run defense is ranked 6th in the league coming into the day, but the Giants have hurt them with 75 rushing yards as of the 2-minute warning.

If New York can control the clock in the second half, they might not even need more fourth quarter magic from Manning.

3. Get physical with Roddy White and Julio Jones.

In the first half, New York hasn't gotten enough pressure on Matt Ryan. As a result, Julio Jones and Roddy White are getting increasingly involved in the game. 

The Giants corners are going to have to do a better job getting in the face of Atlanta's receivers at the line of scrimmage, delaying their breaks and potentially giving the line more time to get to Ryan.

4. Discipline on the offensive line.

In the first half, New York has had multiple instances of holding and false starts, and they've allowed Eli Manning to be pressured on almost every drop back. Before breaking through on their 5th drive of the game, it was looking bleak. Virtually no offensive production and a key safety in the second quarter (right after the defense has stepped up big time to stop the Falcons on fourth down).

The O-line needs to look they they did at the end of the second quarter, not like they did in the first. If they can't keep it together in the second half, New York will be watching the rest of the playoffs on TV.

5. Get the ball to Cruuuuz.

This is a no-brainer. Victor Cruz only has 2 targets as of the 2-minute warning. For a guy with his kind of big-play ability, that's simply not enough touches. Double-teamed or not, New York needs to find ways to get the ball in their most explosive receiver's hands.

A wide receiver screen wouldn't be a bad idea, nor would some quick slants to get him the ball in the middle of the field where he can try to get yards after the catch.