The New York Giants entered the 2023 NFL Playoffs on a bit of a slump, only winning two of their final eight games of the regular season. But once the postseason rolls around, that simply doesn't matter anymore, and the Giants proved as much by picking up a hard-fought 31-24 victory over the Vikings to send them home for the offseason.
Despite the fact that the Giants weren't favored to win this game, it wasn't as if the Vikings were expected to destroy them. Minnesota wasn't your typical three seed, and the holes that had been plaguing them all season long finally ended up destroying them in this game. It was clear early on that the Giants meant business, and they executed their game plan to perfection from the opening kickoff.
New York will now begin to prepare for their Divisional Round matchup against their division rival in the Philadelphia Eagles, but first, it's worth taking a look back at their win over the Vikings and seeing who stood out, and who didn't. So with that being said, let's take a look at two studs and two duds for New York's upset victory over Minnesota.
Giants studs
Daniel Jones
In order for the Giants to even have a shot at winning this game, they were going to need Daniel Jones to have a good game. As it turns out, he may have just put together the best game of his career considering what was at stake for himself and the Giants as a whole. Jones was surgical in the air (24/35, 301 YDS, 2 TD) while also leading the way for New York on the ground (17 CAR, 78 YDS).
Jones didn't get a ton of support from his defense throughout this game, but it didn't matter because of how good the offense looked. Jones is becoming an increasingly big weapon in the air, even with a fairly depleted cast of pass-catchers, and head coach Brian Daboll isn't afraid to use him as a runner either. If Jones keeps playing at this level, the Giants will be very tough to beat.
Saquon Barkley
The other key piece of the offense in Saquon Barkley also had a big day for New York. He only had 14 total touches in this game, but he still managed to find a way to be one of the most impactful players on the day. Barkley was a force on the ground (9 CAR, 53 YDS, 2 TD) while also making plays as a receiver out of the backfield for Jones (5 REC, 56 YDS).
Chances are the Giants will want to get Barkley more involved moving forward, but even with this fairly limited performance, Barkley helped carry New York to a victory. Beating a subpar Vikings defense is one thing, and it's clear Barkley will have some bigger challenges ahead of him, but if he can continue to produce at a high level, the Giants offense will be in a good spot to pull off another upset victory of two before the season ends.
Giants duds
Darius Slayton
For the most part, Darius Slayton had a pretty good day for New York. He hauled in four passes for 88 yards, and was the second most targeted player in the air for the Giants. But he only managed to turn half of his targets into catches, and most of his production came on a huge 47-yard reception. There's nothing wrong with that, but more consistency from Slayton would be nice to see.
Of course, that's not why Slayton finds his way onto the duds list here. On third-and-15 with just over three minutes left in the game, Slayton found himself wide open on a short crosser, and Jones fired him the ball, but Slayton dropped it. Had he caught the pass, he likely would have picked up the first down, and basically ended the game. Instead, he forced the defense to get one last stop, and while they delivered, these mistakes simply cannot be made in a playoff game, and Slayton is lucky the defense bailed him out here.
Azeez Ojulari
The Giants have their fair share of defensive playmakers, and while it wasn't their best day at the office, they managed to get some big performances from key players. One of those players was not Azeez Ojulari, unfortunately, who only finished with one tackle, which admittedly went for a loss, and one quarterback hit.
Ojulari is one of New York's top pass rushers, and on a day where New York failed to sack Kirk Cousins at all, Ojulari's presence was sorely missed. He still managed to make a couple of big plays, but it simply wasn't enough, and moving forward against tougher opponents, Ojulari is going to have to be much better if the Giants want to achieve their ultimate goal of winning a Super Bowl.
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