So, it will be our New York Giants against the NFC East rival Philadelphia Eagles next Sunday at the Meadowlands as the Giants begin defense of their Super Bowl title.
As Giants' fans didn't we know it would fall this way? The Eagles sure did. Check out this quote from defensive back Sheldon Brown.
I would never want to disrespect the Vikings by looking past them... but I kinda knew, we all did that it would come down to a rematch with the Giants
Of course we knew, even if we might not want to admit it. I know most of you rooted for the Vikings Sunday since, theoretically, that would have given the Giants an easier path to the NFC Championship Game.
But, c'mon! Did you really think a team with Tarvaris Jackson at quarterback and no big-play threats on the outside was going to stand up to the Eagles' defense?
Besides, would you really want this any other way? I wouldn't.
For two seasons now, nothing has been easy for the Giants. Last year's Super Bowl run, remember, was accomplished despite being on the road in every game.
This season the Giants went 12-4 despite a brutal schedule that saw them play 10 straight games against teams with winning records, and win six straight when it really mattered.
This team has always brought its best when the challenges were the biggest. So, why wouldn't we want to see Philadelphia Sunday at the Meadowlands?
I'm looking forward to it.
Other playoff Games
Chargers 23, Colts 17: Like Derrick Ward against Carolina, Darren Sproles earned himself a boatload of money with his 328 yards of total offense Saturday. That was a back-and-forth, entertaining as hell game. Too bad Peyton Manning never got to take his baseball off in overtime. So much for that Manning vs. Manning Super Bowl.
Ravens 27, Dolphins 9: The one thing I did not expect in this game was for Miami quarterback Chad Pennington to morph into a turnover machine. Looking intimidated by the Baltimore defense, Pennington threw four interceptions and Miami never had a chance.
Arizona 30, Atlanta 24: I still don't believe the Cardinals can run the football like they did Saturday against really good defenses, but I should have known Arizona was capable of one very good football game. After all, this was the Cards' first home playoff victory since 1947. The Falcons were a nice story, but a team with a bad defense.