NY Giants at Green Bay NFC Wild Card Odds, & Expert Pick

Posted by Michael Hunt on Thursday,January 5, 2017 8:04, EDT in

NFL News, Betting Tips, Picks & Previews

The wild-card weekend in the NFL concludes with the best game of them all late Sunday afternoon as NFC No. 5 seed New York Giants visit red-hot Green Bay, the NFC North champion. The Packers bring a six-game winning streak into Lambeau Field but have lost their past two home playoff games vs. New York. Green Bay is just over a field-goal NFL Wild Card betting favorite

NY Giants at Green Bay NFC Wild Card Odds, Expert Pick & TV Info

When: Sunday, Jan. 8, 4:40 PM ET
Where: Lambeau Field, Green Bay
TV: Fox
Radio: New York / Green Bay
Stream Option: NFL Live
Opening NFL Lines: Packers -4.5 (44)

Why Bet on NY Giants?

The teams will meet in the postseason for the eighth time and first since January 15, 2012, when the Giants defeated the Packers 37-20 in the Divisional Playoffs en route to winning Super Bowl XLVI. New York has won the past two postseason meetings between the clubs and went on to win the Super Bowl in each of those seasons (2007 and 2011).

The Giants are in the postseason for the first time since 2011 when the team won that Super Bowl XLVI. Giants QB Eli Manning is 8-1 in his past nine postseason starts, including a perfect 2-0 record at Green Bay. Manning is one of five players in NFL history to be named Super Bowl MVP multiple times.

The Giants finished second in the NFL in scoring defense – a year after they were 30th – allowing 17.8 points a game. It’s their best finish in that statistical category since 1993, when they gave up a league- low 12.8 points a game. In that season, as in this one, the Giants had a new head coach (Dan Reeves then, Ben McAdoo now).

New York allowed less than 20 points eight times this season, their highest such number since they had eight in 2008. They gave up 20 points in a one-point victory against Cincinnati on Nov. 14 and were 9-0 in games in which they allowed no more than 20 points.

Conversely, the Giants scored fewer than 20 points nine times, their highest total of sub 20-point games since they had 10 in 2003. The Giants were 5-4 in those games. They scored exactly 20 points in their season-opening victory in Dallas, and won an NFL-high six games in which they scored 20 or fewer points.

Expect rookie Paul Perkins to be the Giants' starting RB this game. Perkins got the start in Week 17 against the Redskins with the Giants playing their starters and piled up 102 yards on 21 carries. It was the first 100-yard game for a Giants running back this season. Rashad Jennings produced just 52 yards on 18 carries and has been trending in the wrong direction for weeks.

Why Bet on Green Bay?

Green Bay finished the regular season with six consecutive wins, becoming the only team in the NFL to have a winning streak of four-plus games in each of the last eight seasons (2009-16). The six-game winning streak is the longest to end the season by the Packers since a nine-game streak in 1941. The Packers have advanced to the postseason for the eighth consecutive season, tied with New England for the longest active streak.

Packers Pro Bowl quarterback Aaron Rodgers led the NFL with 40 touchdown passes and became the fourth quarterback in NFL history to throw at least 40 touchdown passes in multiple seasons. In Green Bay’s last seven games – including victories in their final six, which propelled the Packers to the NFC North championship — Rodgers completed 70 percent of his 241 passes while throwing for 18 touchdowns and no interceptions (his streak is actually at 245 consecutive throws without a pick).

“Aaron is playing out of his mind right now,” said Giants coach Ben McAdoo, who was the Packers’ quarterback coach in 2012-13. Rodgers has thrown for at least 300 yards in four postseason games in his career. With 300 passing yards against the Giants on Sunday, Rodgers would join Tom Brady (10), Peyton Manning (nine), Drew Brees (six), Kurt Warner (six) and Pro Football Hall of Famers Joe Montana (six) and Dan Fouts (five) as the only quarterbacks to have at least five 300-yard passing games in NFL postseason history.

Since 2010, the Packers have played the Giants six times (including playoffs), tied for the most games against a non-division opponent (Atlanta Falcons, San Francisco 49ers). The Packers lead the all-time series (including the postseason) 32-26- 2, including a 23-16 home victory over the Giants in Week 5. The winner of each playoff matchup between the Packers and Giants has won the NFL Championship or Super Bowl.