Giants' season ends in a blink in 38-13 loss to Packers

GREEN BAY, Wis. – Justin Pugh stayed on the sideline inside Lambeau Field as most of his Giants teammates made their way back through the stadium tunnel and into the losing locker room.

Most of the crowd of 77,549 was still deliriously celebrating the Packers and their 38-13 victory over the Giants, knocking the latter out of the NFC playoffs Sunday afternoon.

All Pugh could do was soak everything in, holding onto the emotion that had begun to flow through him.

Frustration. Disgust. Bitter disappointment.

Above that, though, was the aching emptiness that resulted from the Giants having a season that was a significant step forward for the franchise abruptly dashed before it could become so much more.

“I stood there at the end of the game and looked into the stands just to remember that,” Pugh said. “They went out there and kicked our [butt]. This feeling is gonna stick with all of us, definitely with me.”

In Ben McAdoo’s first season as head coach, the Giants returned some credibility to the franchise nearly one year to the day co-owner and team president John Mara acknowledged they had lost some.

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The Giants were hoping to bring back memories of their last playoff game here, and just before halftime, they certainly did. Just not the way Big Blue wanted.

This time it was Aaron Rodgers hitting Randall Cobb with a Hail Mary on the final play of the second quarter, as Eli Manning did with Hakeem Nicks five seasons ago to spark the Giants to their run to Super Bowl XLVI.

Call it karma. Call it a disaster of a play for the Giants.

Either way, the Rodgers-to-Cobb 42-yard scoring strike capped a frenzied final 2:20 of the first half that changed the game as the Packers wound up sprinting away from the Giants over the last two quarters.

Rodgers and Cobb connected for three touchdowns in the game as the two-time NFL MVP quarterback surgically took apart a gassed Giants defense forced to play without second-team AP All-Pro cornerback Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie, who suffered a thigh bruise in the first quarter.

Rodgers finished with four touchdown passes, becoming the first quarterback in the Packers’ illustrious playoff history to accomplish the feat twice in the playoffs.

The Giants (11-6) dominated the game’s first 27 minutes, but what had been the perfect performance to begin their first postseason trip in five seasons fell apart swiftly and stunningly in the blink of an eye.

The Packers (11-6) scored a pair of touchdowns on consecutive possessions to close the second quarter after punting on five straight possessions for the first time since Week 3. They’ll now face the top-seeded Cowboys in the NFC divisional round next Sunday at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas.

“I hope everybody in the locker room remembers what it feels like to be in that locker room after a game like this,” McAdoo said. “We need to remember that when we go back to work in the spring.”

The offensive struggles that plagued the Giants all season continued Sunday. They have not scored 20 points in a game since November (six straight games) and finished the season without reaching 30 points in a game all year.

The Giants had far too many missed opportunities offensively in the first half.

Odell Beckham Jr. dropped two passes, one that would have been for a first down and another that could have been a touchdown if he was able to make the catch while falling out of bounds in the end zone. Sterling Shepard also let a touchdown go through his hands in the first half.

Instead of putting Green Bay in a potential insurmountable hole, the Giants settled for a pair of Robbie Gould field goals.

“Going into half, we’re down 7-6 and they just chucked one up and they score. As much as you don’t want to pretend like it doesn’t matter, that’s huge,” Beckham said. “You can kind of feel it. We didn’t come out and catch stride again. It’s unfortunate.”

The Giants did manage to pull within 14-13 when Manning hit Tavarres King on a 41-yard touchdown with 5:16 remaining in the third quarter. But Rodgers marched right down the field, and in four plays, he and Cobb hooked up for a 30-yard score and a 21-13 lead.

The Giants’ special teams were brutal on the afternoon, from coverage teams to Brad Wing’s struggles and inexplicable decisions on punt and kickoff returns by Dwayne Harris and Bobby Rainey.

The Giants have still never won a postseason game in franchise history when they allow more than 21 points.

“There’s a lot of guys that will shed a tear or two [Sunday],” Manning said. “When you lose a playoff game, and for a lot of guys it’s their first time in the playoffs, to have their season abruptly end like that, it’s a shock.”\