New York Giants Defense Could Not Handle Aaron Rodgers

During the regular season, the New York Giants had one of the best defenses in the NFL. On Sunday at Lambeau Field, this strong unit was overpowered by Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers.

The Green Bay Packers easily defeated the New York Giants 38-13 on Sunday in the wild-card round. In an absolute must-win game, the Giants defense just did not have any answers for Aaron Rodgers.

Early on, the performance of their defense was the only thing keeping the Giants in the game. Although the offense was able to move the ball into Packer territory a few times during the first two quarters, they were unable to score a touchdown.

Kicker Robbie Gould converted on both of his field goal attempts in the first half. The Giants led 6-0 in the middle of the second quarter. Rodgers was having a lot of trouble moving the ball.

More from New York Giants

• Caesars New York Promo Code: Win $250 Bonus GUARANTEED on ANY Bet!
• When will the New York Giants’ First Win Come?
• New York Giants Look Horrible in Loss to 49ers
• New York Giants to Play an Injured 49ers Team Sunday
• New York Giants: Breaking Down the Devonta Freeman Signing

Unfortunately, the Giants defense could only contain Rodgers for so long. With less than four minutes to go in the first half, Brad Wing had a short punt that gave the Packers the ball in Giants’ territory.

Rodgers quickly drove his team down the field and hit wide receiver Davante Adams for a 5-yard touchdown pass. The Giants went three-and-out on their next drive and were forced to punt again. Even though they had no timeouts remaining, the Packers were still able to move the ball into Giant territory.

They had the ball on the Giants’ 42-yard line with six seconds remaining. Rodgers had time for one final play and heaved a Hail Mary pass into the end zone that was caught by Packers wide receiver Randall Cobb. This play was devastating for the Giants, as it clearly hurt their confidence and shifted momentum. The Packers led 14-6 at this point.

All the momentum was with the Packers going into halftime. Early in the second half, though, it appeared as though the Giants had recovered.

The Packers were forced to punt on their first drive of the third quarter. The next time that they got the ball, Packers head coach Mike McCarthy faced a tough decision. His team was facing a fourth-and-one at their own 42-yard line. McCarthy decided to go for it, but the decision did not pay off as the Giants defensive line stuffed Packers running back Ty Montgomery, giving the ball back to the Giants.

A few plays later, Giants quarterback Eli Manning threw a 41-yard touchdown pass to Tavarres King. This had the chance to be a turning point in the game, but Rodgers and the Packers refused to let the Giants build off of their momentum.

On the following drive, Cobb caught his second touchdown pass of the game. This gave the Packers a 21-13 lead. It was all downhill from there for the Giants. Green Bay added a field goal on their next drive, and early in the fourth quarter, Rodgers threw another touchdown pass to Cobb. Before the game ended, the Packers scored one more touchdown, and they went on to win 38-13.

Needless to say, the Giants defense had a very rough day in Green Bay. Rodgers threw for 362 yards and had four touchdowns against them.

Next: New York Giants Team Grades vs Green Bay Packers

It was a tough ending to the season for the Giants. They made great strides this year but fell short of the ultimate goal. If they can keep this team together, then there is a good chance that they will be back in the playoffs next season.