Danny Dimes Shines As Giants Stop Vikings in Wild Card

GIANTS 31 - VIKINGS 24

Hey Philadelphia, guess who's coming down the Turnpike next weekend?

That's right folks, things are going to get wild up and down I-95 this week after the New York Giants disposed of the Minnesota Vikings 31-24 in a wild Wild Card game on Sunday evening.

Quarterback Daniel Jones shined brightly for Big Blue as the Giants christened their return to the playoffs after a six-year absence with a thrilling win over a Vikings team they lost to just four weeks ago.

Jones completed 24-of-35 passes for 301 yards and two touchdowns; he also led Big Blue in rushing 78 yards on 17 carries.

Jones' accuracy and ability to scramble and make plays had the Vikings totally perplexed from start to finish as the Giants rolled up 431 yards of offense, 28 first downs and held the football for nearly 34 minutes.

Running back Saquon Barkley also had a huge day, rushing for two touchdowns and 53 yards on the ground. Isaiah Hodgins had a monster evening, hauling in eight passes for 105 yards including a sick sideline catch with 11 minutes to go in the game with score tied at 24.

That catch extended a drive for the Giants that culminated in a Barkley touchdown to put Big Blue up for good, 31-24.

The Giants offense was on top of its game all evening. After Minnesota scored on its opening drive, Jones needed only five plays to get the Giants in the end zone. He hit Darius Slayton for 22-yards. Next Jones scrambled for 15 more to the Vikings 28. Barkley took it from there, bursting through the line and streaking down the sideline for the score to tie it up at seven.

After a Minnesota three-and-out, Jones connected with Slayton again from 47-yards out to put the ball deep in Vikings territory. Three plays later, Jones found Hodgins in the end zone for the score. Just like that it was 14-7 G-Men.

Certainly there were moments that left Giants fans sweating, like the false start penalty that nullified a Giants touchdown that forced New York to settle for a field goal. And the Darius Slayton drop on third and 15 with 3:05 to go that would have been a first down and game over.

But in each case the Giants believed. The D stepped up against Kirk Cousins, who had no answers for the Giants in the second half. In fact on the final drive of the game, Cousins inexplicably dumped a pass off on fourth and eight that ended the game.

Now Big Blue rolls into Philly to face their arch rivals next Saturday. The Eagles swept the Giants in the regular season, but this is much different Giants team, and the Eagles didn't see the G-Men at full strength when they met a week ago in Week 18.

Nobody does a locker room post game better than Brian Daboll.