Hakeem Nicks was a hard man to handle for the Bucs defense in the Giants big come-from-behind win over Tampa Bay. (Chris Faytok/THE STAR-LEDGER via US PRESSWIRE)
N.Y. Giants (1-1) at Carolina Panthers (1-1)
Thursday, 8 p.m. ET, NFL Network, Brad Nessler, Mike Mayock, Alex Flanagan
Last meeting: Hakeem Nicks caught three TD passes from Eli Manning in the first regular-season home game at MetLife Stadium in 2010, helping the Giants to a 31-18 victory.
Streaking: Manning has a 144.5 passer rating in the second half in 2012, averaging 12.9 yards per completion with five passes of 20-plus yards.
Can Brown do it for Giants?: Andre Brown was merely transactions page fodder since he was drafted in 2009 – he played for four teams last season alone — but he’s in line to start even if Ahmad Bradshaw (neck) is active. Brown has 15 career carries, including 13 for 71 yards last week. His strengths as a pass blocker and receiver keeps him ahead of rookie David Wilson. The Panthers are vulnerable against the run between the tackles, but Brown isn’t a power runner. Manning has established TE Martellus Bennett as a third option and trusts Brown as an outlet. He’s been most potent attacking downfield. Panthers CB Chris Gamble has smothering cover skills. Whether Gamble gets island treatment to match Hakeem Nicks one-on-one with coverage rolled to Victor Cruz on the left side of the offensive formation will be part of the chess game between Ron Rivera and the Giants’ coaching staff.
Chip shots: The Cowboys and Buccaneers effectively bought time in the pocket for their quarterbacks by chipping with backs and tight ends at the line of scrimmage. Osi Umenyiora, Justin Tuck and Jason Pierre-Paul have combined for just one sack and one quarterback hit in two games and must be disciplined to contain Cam Newton. He had 71 rushing yards last week and has completed 37 of 53 passes for 556 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions. Carolina’s offense is based on steady outside running with a very deep, dangerous group of runners including Newton. To pack the box, the Giants could dust off a variation of the hyper-aggressive game plan they’ve used to contain Michael Vick – cover zero, meaning isolated man coverage and no deep safety – with persistent blitz packages. That’s an extremely high-risk play given the shaky play of Giants cornerbacks and Brandon LaFell’s development as a second option to Steve Smith.
Need to know: Manning had three TD passes in each of his last two games against Carolina. … Newton last week became the second player in NFL history with at least 250 passing yards, 125-plus passer rating, 70 rushing yards and a rush TD in one game.
