Divisional round lessons for the New York Giants

What lesson can the New York Giants take from the just-concluded Divisional round of the NFL playoffs? It really isn’t something new, just a re-affirmation of what we learned watching the Giants throughout the 2016 season.

If the Giants want to be a real Super Bowl contender they need to improve their offense. Drastically.

The Giants weren’t competitive in a 38-13 wild-card loss to the Green Bay Packers largely because their offense couldn’t keep pace. The Giants had a 6-0 second-quarter lead when it should have been at least 17-0, possibly 21-0. They let Aaron Rodgers and Co. hang around, and once Rodgers got hot they had no chance.

In this past weekend’s Divisional round, three of the four winners scored more than 30 points. The Atlanta Falcons dropped 36 points on the Seattle Seahawks, and the Packers and New England Patriots each scored 34.

This isn’t new information for Giants fans, but Ben McAdoo’s offense did not score 30 points in any of the team’s 17 games. The Giants, in fact, did not reach the 20-point mark in nine of those 17 games — including their last five.

Giants’ fans need to hope they find enough answers on offense this offseason to have a chance when games against high-scoring teams like Atlanta or Green Bay turn into shootouts.

Here are a few other notes from the weekend.

• Aaron Rodgers is ridiculous. A human being on the run, especially away from his throwing hand, is not supposed to be able to do the things Rodgers can do.

• Chris Boswell set a postseason record with six field goals in the Pittsburgh Steelers 18-16 victory over the Kansas City Chiefs. The Giants cut Boswell at the end of the 2015 preseason.
• Forget what Pittsburgh coach Mike Tomlin said about the Patriots on Sunday night, which probably wasn’t very smart to begin with. What on earth was Antonio Brown thinking broadcasting his coach’s remarks on Facebook live?
• Finally, a note to the BBV community. Gloat all you want about Dallas losing on Sunday, but do it with a little decency. I had to waste my time this morning deleting some of the vile comments and images posted Sunday night. Bottom line is that there are guidelines, and if you’re going to be here they need to be followed.