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The New York Giants Week 16 matchup vs. the Minnesota Vikings gives the G-Men a chance to solidify its playoff spot for 2022. Currently in sixth in the NFC, a win on Saturday would lock the Giants in if the Seattle Seahawks or Detroit Lions lose another game. With that in mind, ahead of Giants-Vikings, let’s make some bold Giants predictions.
In Week 15, the Giants beat their division rivals, the Washington Commanders, to put themselves on the final step in front of the doorway to the playoffs. Now, a win and a single loss by a competitor will, amazingly, put them in the postseason for the first time since 2016.
On the Vikings' side, they just had your standard 33-point second-half comeback last week against the Indianapolis Colts to clinch the NFC North. No big deal. Even though their division is wrapped up, they are still in the mix for the No. 1 seed overall and a first-round bye if the Philadelphia Eagles slip up, which seems like more of a possibility now due to the Jalen Hurts injury.
This Giants-Vikings game is one of the most crucial contests on the odd 2022 Christmas week schedule. So, let’s make some bold Giants predictions.
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3. Kayvon Thibodeaux has another amazing day
Giants defensive end and 2022 No. 5 overall pick Kayvon Thibodeaux told reporters ahead of last week’s game when asked if he likes primetime games, “primetime likes me.”
That declaration proved true as Thibodeaux shined in the Sunday night spotlight vs. the Commanders, racking up 12 tackles, a sack, a forced fumble, a fumble recovery, and a touchdown.
The bold Giants prediction ahead of Giants-Vikings is that Christmas Eve likes Thibodeaux, too.
A preseason game injury kept the star pass-rusher on the shelf until Week 3, and his first sack didn’t come until Week 6. Since then, he’s been OK, but last Sunday represented a true breakout game for the former Oregon Duck.
In the Giants’ Week 16 contest, look for Thibodeaux to build on that success and put up his first multi-sack game of the season against a Vikings team coming down from the high of pulling off the biggest comeback in NFL history last week vs. the Colts.
Thibodeaux will make his presence felt in this crucial Giants-Vikings matchup and then officially add his name as next in line to the great Giants lineage of Lawrence Taylor, Leonard Marshall, Michael Strahan, Osi Umenyiora, Justin Tuck, and Jason Pierre-Paul.
2. Giants clinch a playoff berth
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After posting a 22-59 record for the last five years, no one gave the Giants that much of a chance in 2022. However, new head coach Brian Daboll came in and changed the culture, put quarterback Daniel Jones in a position to succeed, and got a fully healthy Saquon Barkley for the first time since his rookie season.
That allowed the Giants to shock the NFL and start the campaign 6-1. Since then, the team is 2-4-1, but that’s enough after the hot start to put them in the driver’s seat for the playoffs. This is a far cry from what most expected from the team this season, but in the Giants Week 16 matchup, they can clinch a playoff spot for the first time in a half-decade.
What they have going for them in Week 16 is that the teams behind them — the Seahawks and the Lions — have the Kansas City Chiefs and the always-frisky Carolina Panthers, respectively, this week.
All it will take is one of those teams to lose (most likely the Seahawks), and the Giants will be on the proverbial 1-yard line with 1st-and-Goal to get to the playoffs. The only thing they need to do then is punch it into the end zone against the Vikings, and that is exactly what they will do.
1. Giants 28, Vikings 27
The final bold Giants prediction is that the G-Men travel to Minnesota and pick up their ninth win of the season, which — when coupled with a Lions or Seahawks loss – puts them in the playoffs.
The Vikes have to be physically and emotionally spent after last week’s comeback. And with the media and the public possibly starting to believe in them again as a potential Super Bowl contender, they are due for a choke job.
On the flip side, while the Vikings fluctuate week-to-week like a cryptocurrency, the Giants have had the consistency of a low-risk mutual fund under Daboll this season. And just like investing in wild times, when the pressure gets ratcheted up, the smarter investment is in the slow and steady growth, not the boom or bust trend.
That’s why the Giants' Week 16 game is the game where they officially punch their ticket to Wild Card Weekend 2022.
