NFL Playoff Predictions: Winner of Jets vs. Giants Will Be Postseason Force

The trash has been talked. The scenarios explained. The practices practiced. All that is left in the Christmas Eve showdown between the New York Jets and New York Giants is to play the actual game.

Today at 1 p.m. EST, MetLife Stadium will play host to both its residents.

At 8-6, the Jets have a solid line into the No. 6 Wild Card seed.

At 7-7, the Giants are fighting for their playoff life. 

These two teams don't like each other and the debate as to which team truly owns New York is still worth arguing.

Big Blue won the Super Bowl in 2007 but haven't found playoff success since. In fact, in the last two years, they haven't qualified for the postseason.

In those same two years, Rex Ryan has coached the Jets to AFC Championship Games.

The Giants will say that just getting to the postseason doesn't mean anything. And the Jets will argue that you have to be in it to win it.

For either team to be in, they have to win on Saturday first. And whichever team wins will be a force to be reckoned with.

Gang Green and Big Blue are no strangers to pressure and adversity. If either of them make the postseason, they'll have one thing that a number of other teams don't: experience.

If the Jets win and eventually make the postseason, they have no reason to fear any of the top seeds in the AFC. They've been in that position before and they know, when they play their game, they can beat anyone.

The same goes for the Giants. They already beat the Patriots this season and took the Packers to the brink of defeat as well. They have a quarterback who never says die and has an uncanny knack for making plays when it matters most.

Both teams can find ways to put pressure on the quarterback, and both teams have coaches who know how to win in the postseason as well.

When all is said and done, if either or both the Giants and Jets make the postseason, they will be dangerous for every higher seed.

In order to make it count, they need to win on Saturday. Whoever wins will have a huge advantage moving forward.