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Giants Now: Takeaways from New Year's Day win

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Takeaways from New Year's Day win

The Giants thrived in their New Year's Day victory over the Indianapolis Colts as both sides of the ball stepped up in the win-and-in contest.

The offense put up a season-high 31 points and the defense added a touchdown themselves while also holding the Colts to just 10 points.

Brian Daboll and the entire team garnered a lot of praise from the media for their Week 17 win, which clinched the franchise's first postseason berth since 2016.

Here are some takeaways from the playoff-clinching win.

*Daniel Jones had perhaps his most efficient outing of the season on Sunday. He completed 79.2 percent of his passes (19 of 24) for 177 yards, two touchdowns and zero interceptions for a passer rating of 125.2. Jones was also the team's leading rusher as he ran the ball 11 times for 91 yards (8.3 avg.) and an additional two scores. He had four runs of 10+ yards and averaged 3.4 yards after contact. His performance earned him the nod as one of Peter King's Stars of Week 17.

*Jones' 1.1 interception percentage is the lowest mark among starting quarterbacks. Meanwhile, he ranks fifth among quarterbacks with 708 rushing yards and is tied with Josh Allen for third with seven touchdowns on the ground (heading into Monday Night Football).

*Saquon Barkley rushed for 58 yards on just 12 carries, good for an average of 4.8 yards per attempt. He increased his rushing total on the season to 1,312 yards, a new career-high for the fifth-year running back.

*Richie James scored his fourth touchdown in the last seven games as he caught all seven of his targets for 76 yards and the score. Jones had a passer rating of 151.5 when targeting James, who is averaging 67.3 receiving yards per game over the last four outings.

*Isaiah Hodgins also caught a touchdown pass, his fourth in the last five games. He finished with four receptions for 42 yards and the score, with Jones having a passer rating of 141.3 when targeting him. Hodgins and James are tied with a team-high four touchdown receptions this season.

*Andrew Thomas did not allow a single pressure on 30 pass blocking snaps against the Colts. This earned him a spot on PFF's Team of the Week.

*Jon Feliciano, Evan Neal and Mark Glowinski allowed just one pressure each on 30 pass blocking snaps. Overall, the team did not allow a single sack.

View photos from the Giants' Week 17 game against the Indianapolis Colts.

*Dexter Lawrence notched another sack and three quarterback hits, extending his career-high marks to 7.5 and 28, respectively. Prior to this season, his career-bests were four sacks and 11 quarterback hits. On the sack, Lawrence bulldozed over four-time All-Pro guard Quenton Nelson on his way to taking down the quarterback.

*Pro Football Focus named Lawrence one of their top non-QB MVP candidates, joining the likes of Justin Jefferson, Nick Bosa, Tyreek Hill, Travis Kelce and several others. "Lawrence might be the least talked-about player on this list amid a 2022 breakout season that has flown under the radar... The Giants' defensive captain ranks second in total pressures among interior defenders (63) but is the lone nose tackle among the top 10 on that list. We have rarely seen a defender his size be this productive rushing the passer."

*Lawrence lead the way with three total pressures, while Jaylon Smith was right behind him with two. Smith finished with a team-high nine total tackles (five solo) and three run stops, the latter of which was just one behind Lawrence for the most on the defense.

*Kayvon Thibodeaux registered a sack, two tackles for loss and a pass breakup, along with two run stops. The sack was his third in the last five games and marked the second consecutive outing with a pass breakup.

*Landon Collins did not allow a single reception on 20 coverage snaps. Of course, he had one of the plays of the game with his interception that he returned 52 yards for a touchdown. But on top of that, Colts quarterbacks had a 0.0 passer rating when throwing in Collins' direction.

*Nick McCloud gave up three receptions for 14 yards on five targets, good for a passer rating against of just 64.6.

*Coach Brian Daboll was named the Coach of the Week by NBC Sports' Peter King.

"The Giants routed the Colts 38-10, scoring in the thirties for the first time in 43 games," wrote King. "That says enough about the competent offense Daboll has built in New Jersey. The win clinched New York's first winning season and first playoff season since 2016. Remember where the Giants were four months ago? In Nowheresville, just trying to be competent. Now they're 9-6-1 and headed for the playoffs, with Daboll's leadership a huge key."

View rare photos of the historic rivalry between the New York Giants and Philadelphia Eagles.

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