Big Day For Nabers
Photo: Michael Henriquez – NY Beacon
MetLife Stadium
By Andrew Rosario
Flacco Starts No Playoffs For Indy
Photo: Michael Henriquez – NY Beacon
MetLife Stadium
This is the kind of year it has been for the New York Football Giants. When they hosted the Indianapolis Colts Sunday, they were on track to have the number 1 draft pick in the 2025 NFL Draft. They had lost 10 games in a row and had not won a home game all year. But a funny thing happened at MetLife Stadium. The Colts needed a win to keep their faint playoff hopes alive. Indy had to start veteran Joe Flacco due to the injury to their starter Anthony Richardson. A win against the Giants and a win in their last game against the lowly Jacksonville Jaguars would have given them a shot at the postseason. Instead, the laid an egg against a team that was starting its third string quarterback. The Colts made Drew Lock look like an All-Star.
After taking a 3-0 lead on a Matt Gay 32-yard field goal, Lock drove the team 70-yards in 5 plays ending in a 31-yard pass play to rookie wide receiver Malik Nabers. Lock was not finished. Lock connected with wide receivers Darius Slayton (32 yards) and Wan’Dale Robinson (5 yards) to extend the lead to 21-6. The special teams got the home crowd to rise to their feet to start the third quarter as Ihmir Smith-Marsette returned the kick-off 100-yards for a 28-13 lead. Knowing their season was slipping away, the Colts got would not go away without a fight.
Flacco (26-38, 330 yards, 2 td’s, 2 int’s) threw touchdown passes to Alec Pierce (13 yards) and Michael Pitts, Jr (7yards) to get the within 2-points at 28-26. Unfortunately, the 2-point conversion failed that would have tied the game.
Lock and Nabers would hook up again this time for a 59-yard touchdown giving Big Blue a 35-26 lead and the watched as Flacco and Pitts, Jr do the same thing with another 7-yard touchdown once again getting them within 2 at 35-32. Lock would then use his legs to put the game away. Driving the team 70 yards in 9 plays, Lock runs it in from 5 yards out. Graham Gano added a 30-yard field goal to ice the game 45-33.
Said Lock after the game, “It was a lot of fun. We were clicking. We knew we had it in us. It was just time to go out and show it and do it. So, it was a fun time. Really good time.’’
Before the start of the game, the New York Giants had a 61% chance of getting the first pick in the draft. After their win, the number fell to 1% as they are now projected as the number 4 pick. That could change as a result of next week’s games.
The Giants end their season against bitter rival Philadelphia Eagles who destroyed the Dallas Cowboys 41-7. Ex-Giants running back Saquon Barkley gained 161 yards on 31 carries giving him 2,005 total yards on the season. Barkley needs only 101 yards to break the season single season rushing record of 2,105 set by Eric Dickerson in 1984.
The Eagles win clinched the NFC East division. It has not been decided if Philadelphia will play Barkley or rest him for the playoffs.
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