Bruno Boys Fantasy Football

THE STORY: It's no secret the road to the Super Bowl goes through Green Bay. That hardly seems to faze the New York Giants, who are fairly confident they know how to navigate that route - again. The Giants will look to avenge a 38-35 loss to the Packers last month when they visit Green Bay in an NFL divisional round matchup on Sunday. The stakes are considerably higher this time, much as they were four years ago in the last postseason game at Lambeau Field, when the Giants outlasted the Packers in overtime to advance to the Super Bowl in what was Brett Favre's last game with Green Bay. It promises to be an emotional game for the reigning Super Bowl champs following the drowning death of offensive coordinator Joe Philbin's son earlier in the week.

TV: FOX, 4:30 p.m. ET. LINE: Packers -7.5, O/U 52.5

ABOUT THE GIANTS (10-7): Talk about peaking at the right time. New York won its third consecutive game, manhandling the Atlanta Falcons 24-2 - yes, 2 - in last week's wild-card round. Eli Manning continued his stellar season by throwing for 277 yards and three touchdowns - two to Hakeem Nicks - to secure a rematch with Green Bay. Manning has had to carry the load this season due to the Giants' league-worse ground game, but even that changed last week as Brandon Jacobs and Ahmad Bradshaw combined for 155 of New York's 172 rushing yards. WR Mario Manningham, who missed the last two games due to injury, had four receptions for 68 yards and a TD. New York's defense has permitted a total of 30 points in the three-game winning streak.

ABOUT THE PACKERS (15-1): While the Giants are eager for another shot at Green Bay, they need to figure out how to stop Aaron Rodgers from carving up their defense. Rodgers threw for 45 TDs against only six interceptions while sitting out the season finale. He burned the Giants for 369 yards and four scoring passes last month, and threw for 404 yards with four TDs in a 45-17 rout of New York in December 2010. Rodgers gets his top target back in WR Greg Jennings, who missed the last three games with a knee injury. Jennings has 14 receptions for 236 yards and a TD in his last two games against New York. Despite ranking last in overall defense, the Packers had an NFL-best 31 interceptions.

EXTRA POINTS:

1. Green Bay went 8-0 at home this season and has won 13 consecutive games at Lambeau Field.

2. The stakes are usually high when the Packers and Giants meet in the postseason. The first five meetings decided the NFL Championship, and the last one was for the NFC title.

3. New York is in the postseason for the 31st time, a league record. Green Bay is seeking to become the third team (Pittsburgh, Dallas) with 30 playoff victories.

PREDICTION: Packers 34, Giants 27. Well-rested Green Bay wins an emotional game to move one step closer to a return trip to the Super Bowl.