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Saturday, January 13
Giants will give Vikings a run for title
By Sean Salisbury
Special to ESPN.com
The Giants should be as confident as any team in the league. Concerns about their soft schedule are groundless. You don't win 12 games in the NFL without beating some good teams. When you're on the verge of not making the playoffs and you end up with home-field advantage there is something to be said for that.
|  | | Randy Moss caught 15 touchdown passes during the regular season. |
They are riding an emotional wave. Last week they easily handled Donovan McNabb, the player who some thought would be the MVP of the league. They're doing everything right. The Giants are the most complete team in the NFC and have been for two months. Their strategy is simple. Play good special teams, play physical, intimidating defense, get solid play from the quarterback and run the ball. The players believe in themselves and in their coach, and Jim Fassel believes in them. The Giants are in good shape.
Before last week, the Vikings were not at all a confident team. The way they finished the season -- and the uncertainty of how well Daunte Culpepper was going to handle his injury -- made the situation a bit dire for Minnesota.
But there's no better coach at dealing with distractions than Denny Green. He was able to convince his team that it simply didn't matter how they ended the season. This is the playoffs and the Vikings were going to be fine. And they were. The coaches and the leaders on this team are keeping the younger players focused and confident. It only takes one game to get that feeling of invincibility
back.
Here are the keys for Sunday's NFC conference championship game:
Three keys for the Giants:
 1. Run the football. The Giants big team has to be able to dominate the smaller Viking defense. This has been an Achilles' Heel for Minnesota for some time. The Giants hope they can wear the Vikings down with their powerful running game.
2. Limit Moss TDs. Cris Carter will keep the chains moving but Randy Moss will demoralize you. He can't be allowed to turn an eight-yard slant into a 65-yard touchdown. Give Carter his catches if you have to but do whatever it takes to bring Moss down after his catches.
3. Pressure Culpepper. The Giants cannot play soft zone against this offense. Moss will find space and make tacklers miss. Culpepper is young, regardless of the great year he had. Blitz him and hit him in the mouth. If a quarterback keeps getting hit the ball comes out quicker no matter
how big you are.
Three keys for the Vikings:
 1. Get Moss off early. If Moss doesn't get the ball in the first half the entire team will know about it. If he gets his hands on the ball early he is happy and productive.
2. Stop the run. Commit eight men to the box. They need to jump and move around up front so that the big Giants' linemen can't get a hold of the undersized Minnesota defensive line. If the Giants are in second and short situations all day the Vikings are in trouble.
3. Get some interceptions. The Vikings will move the football. The Giants will be able to move the football at times and they will be able to play defense at times. The x-factor will be if the Vikings defense can make plays and score. They haven't been able to do it all year. On the road the defense has to do something
special.
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