1) Bradshaw bursts for 59 yards. After a month of spinning their wheels, the Giants needed a spark on offense or they would be in danger of losing their third straight game. Bradshaw delivered exactly that on the fourth play of the game when he caught a screen pass and rumbled down to the Packers’ 2-yard line. The 59-yard gain was the longest play of the night for the Giants, leading to
Andre Brown
’s touchdown on the opening drive.
2) Nelson slips by the Giants. As quickly as MetLife Stadium came to life on the first drive, the breath was taken away just as easily when Jordy Nelson broke free down the right sideline on the ensuing possession. Green Bay quarterback Aaron Rodgers hit his wide receiver in-stride for a 61-yard score, and just like that, the game was tied back up. For the time being, it appeared a shootout was in the making. But
Corey Webster would redeem himself later in the first quarter with an interception that led to a
Lawrence Tynes field goal.
3) Manning lowers the boom. There comes a certain level of toughness with 130 consecutive starts in the NFL, and
Eli Manning showed it on Sunday night. On third-and-7 at Green Bay’s 34, Manning scrambled for a first down but wanted more. He chose not to slide and lowered his shoulder to pick up a few more yards. The 13-yard run kept the drive alive and resulted in his 16-yard touchdown pass to
Rueben Randle.
4) Osi strips, JPP scoops.
Osi Umenyiora, the master of the strip-sack, used his patented move on Rodgers late in the first half as he came around and knocked the ball out of the quarterback’s hand.
Jason Pierre-Paul scooped it up and returned it 10 yards down to Green Bay’s 23. Umenyiora’s 74th sack and 32nd forced fumble led to
Ahmad Bradshaw’s touchdown and a 31-10 lead.
5) Manning hits 200. Entering the game with 197 passing touchdowns, Manning needed three more to break Phil Simms’ team record. The throw to Randle made it 198. The touchdown strike to
Victor Cruz tied it up. And leave it to
Hakeem Nicks to make the record breaker the most dramatic. On third-and-13, Nicks caught a pass over the middle and stretched out toward the goal line. The play was initially called just shy of the end zone, but Tom Coughlin threw his first challenge flag of the year. He and the Giants would be successful as the play was reversed and ruled a touchdown.
