Do the Giants clinch their playoff ticket?

A curiosity is brewing in the National Football Conference this season. In fact, with two days left in the regular season, all four teams in the NFC East can still make the NFL playoffs. The chances are not bad at all, as both the New York Giants and the Washington Commanders have everything in their own hands.

The Giants in particular have a very promising starting position, as a win on Sunday night at home against Indianapolis would be enough to secure one of the three Wild Card spots.

Head coach Brian Daboll’s team will go into the match as clear favourites. If you want to bet on the expected home win between the Giants and the Colts, you can only get odds of 1.40 on the two-way market.

The G-Men should benefit first and foremost from the fact that there is nothing at stake for their opponents from Indy and that they have not been competitive in the last three halves. It is unlikely that the third-placed team in the AFC South, which is struggling with major problems at the quarterback position and also relies on an inexperienced coach at this level, will excel again in the Big Apple. Consequently, our prediction between the Giants and the Colts goes clearly in the direction of the home side.

New York Giants – Statistics & current form

In the run-up to this season, the New York Giants were not necessarily considered hot playoff aspirants in the NFC East. Thanks to a good start to the new year, however, a certain momentum has developed over the last few weeks and months that has now put the four-time NFL champions in a very promising position. With a positive record of eight wins, six losses and one draw, the Giants actually have the best chance of winning one of the two remaining tickets for the postseason.

If the lower odds on the home team winning prove true on Sunday night between the Giants and the Colts, coach Brian Daboll’s team is no longer in contention for the Wild Card. Although things haven’t gone so well for Big Blue lately and only one of the past six matches could be won, the role of favourite is absolutely understandable.

Will a reasonably flawless performance be enough for victory?

The Giants have a passable quarterback in Daniel Jones, who will definitely outplay his counterpart regardless of who starts for the Colts. In recent weeks, the playmaker has increasingly impressed with his own runs. In general, the run-offense is the biggest strength. With running back Saquon Barkley as the workhorse, the Giants manage 144 yards per game on the ground. Only five other teams are better.

But the bottom line is that New York doesn’t need any special tools to beat Indy on Sunday. It will probably be enough once again if they avoid losing the ball themselves, put some pressure on the opposing O-line themselves and then simply go with Barkley, Jones as well as the home advantage in their own offence.

By the way, especially the alluded to topic of turnovers speaks a clear language in this duel. While NYG has a differential of +2, the visitors are at the bottom of the NFL with -13. This is one of the reasons why we are inclined to make a prediction on the playoff contender before the duel between the Giants and the Colts.

Predicted line-up of New York Giants:
QB: Daniel Jones, RB: Saquon Barkley, WR: Darius Slayton, TE: Daniel Bellinger, K: Graham Gano

Indianapolis Colts – stats & current form

Two weeks ago, the Indianapolis Colts made a mockery of themselves around the league. After leading 33-0 against the Minnesota Vikings, they actually lost the match and eventually had to acknowledge that they became part of the biggest comeback in NFL history. But those who believed that a reaction would be forthcoming a week later were proved wrong.

Against the Chargers, Indy went 3:20 under the wheels and revealed serious deficiencies in their own offence. Quarterback Nick Foles, who replaced Matt Ryan in the starting line-up, threw an incredible three interceptions and was the kryptonite of the team.

Are the Saturday men going down again?

Generally, the many ball losses are a persistent problem. There have been 30 giveaways so far. For comparison: The second-worst team in this ranking comes to 23 turnovers. Before the Giants’ duel against the Colts, the odds of 3.20 for a defensive or special team TD are therefore well worth considering.

A complicating factor in the current phase is that the experiment of appointing Jeff Saturday, a completely inexperienced former TV expert, as head coach has obviously failed. The self-confident Saturday seems overwhelmed, sometimes lapses into actionism and is torn apart by the media week after week. At the moment, people are already talking about one of the worst coaches in NFL history.

As if the problems weren’t complex enough, the Colts will of course have to do without superstar Jonathan Taylor at the running back position again on Sunday. At least his replacement, Zack Moss, has been making a name for himself lately with good performances. Nevertheless, we do not expect the guests to score many points in this match. A commanding home victory is therefore obvious.

Predicted line-up of Indianapolis Colts:
QB: Nick Foles, RB: Zack Moss, WR: Michael Pittmann, TE: Jelani Woods, K: Chase McLaughlin

New York Giants – Indianapolis Colts Head-to-head comparison / H2H record

For the first time in four years, the two teams will face each other in an NFL game. Back then, the Colts prevailed with 28:27. In fact, five of the past six direct duels since 2013 have gone to Indy. However, because completely different protagonists were on the field back then, this head-to-head record can be safely disregarded. For the upcoming match, the historical results have no relevance whatsoever.

New York Giants – Indianapolis Colts Tip

On paper, the affair is a clear-cut affair on Sunday evening from 19:00 German time at MetLife Stadium. Between the Giants and the Colts, the betting odds on the two-way market are clearly in favour of the third-placed team from the NFC East. No wonder, after all, the Deboll team can clinch everything in the race for the playoffs with a home win.

We have no doubts at all about such a scenario. Indy has been too weak in the last three halves. Head coach Saturday is out of his depth. Quarterback Foles threw three interceptions in the last match, the defence can hardly get a leg on the ground and the total of 30 turnovers this season is by far the worst value in the league-wide comparison.

Although Daniel Jones and Co. have rarely performed well lately and have only won one of the last six matches after a promising first half of the season, they should still be able to win in front of their home crowd and due to their starting position.

We even assume that this will be a little clearer, and therefore play the tip between the Giants and the Colts on a home win with at least six points difference. Bet365 offers a 1.90 at the top. We choose six units as the bet. Alternatively, you can bet on a commanding half-time lead or on the Giants defence scoring a touchdown, for example with a pick six.