The New York Giants aren’t exactly an uncommon opponent for the Green Bay Packers, but they might as well be given all the changes within the franchise this week. The Giants hired coach Brian Daboll, installed offensive coordinator Mike Kafka as the interim coach and named Jameis Winston as the starter in place of injured quarterback Jaxson Dart. Add in a lengthy injury report featuring several key players for the Giants, who are 2-8 after 10 games, and Kafka’s team will be almost unrecognizable come Sunday.
Can the Packers get back in the win column against a team that has lost four straight games and is entering another transition period?
To help preview Packers-Giants and get to know the Giants before Sunday, we asked five questions of Dan Benton, the managing editor of Giants Wire. Here’s our Q&A:
1. It was a big week in Giants world. What are you expecting from interim coach Mike Kafka and backup QB Jameis Winston on Sunday?
Giants Wire: It’s hard to tell because of the weather forecast. If the game were played under sunny skies with no wind, I would have expected a typical air-it-out performance by Jameis Winston. You know the one — three touchdowns and four interceptions. But given the expected wind gusts of 45-plus MPH, I have to believe they will devise a run-heavy gameplan while still attempting a shot or two throughout the game. That’s not ideal for the Giants, given their inconsistency with run blocking and the absence of rookie Cam Skattebo, but I could see Kafka mixing things up a bit with some end-arounds, wide receiver screens, and maybe even an old-school T formation here and there.
2. The Giants are possibly the worst run defense in football despite the talent up front. Can it get turned around?
Giants Wire: Personally, I don’t see a turnaround coming. They are plagued by a plethora of issues, beginning with Shane Bowen’s misuse of talent, to lacking depth at the second and third levels. Toss in an inability to tackle, and it’s Murphy’s Law for the Giants’ defense. The only player who truly excelled against the run this season — linebacker Kayvon Thibodeaux — is out on Sunday, so it should be a day for the Packers and Josh Jacobs to feast.
3. Considering the injuries, how are the Giants going to score points this week?
Giants Wire: There’s a lot of illegal in-game betting going on across America’s four major sports these days, so perhaps John Mara or Steve Tisch could slip the referees a little something-something. Outside of that, your guess is as good as mine. Short of a lucky bounce or two, it’s going to be a real challenge for the Giants to cross the goal line, and even field goals will be tough to come by given the winds. They’re going to need some creativity and maybe hit the Packers with a few things they haven’t put on film yet. At 2-8 with a head coach already fired, who cares, right? Empty out the bag of tricks.
4. The Giants beat the Chargers and Eagles at home this season. How did they pull those wins off, and is the formula repeatable this week?
Giants Wire: Those games were won largely due to the effort by Jaxson Dart and Cam Skattebo, coupled with brief flashes from superstar players like Dexter Lawrence and Brian Burns. The rookies completely went off in each of those wins, and now both are gone. That alone changes the entire dynamic, while the other factors were somewhat fluke occurrences (see: a rare plus gameplan from Shane Bowen, a Lawrence interception, and two opponents caught sleeping). Unfortunately for the Giants, they don’t have the means to replicate that success on Sunday.
5. Any chance of an upset? Who wins on Sunday and why?
Giants Wire: The conditions on Sunday (wind gusts up to 45 MPH) are not going to be favorable to the Giants and new starting quarterback Jameis Winston, who loves to air things out. That leaves interim head coach Mike Kafka reliant on a run game that has largely underwhelmed following the loss of rookie Cam Skattebo, which will be compounded by Green Bay’s stout defense. The Packers are entering desperation mode and have everything to play for, while the Giants are shattered, in the midst of change, and seem content with simply running the clock out on this season. Packers 27, Giants 10.
This article originally appeared on Packers Wire: Packers vs. Giants preview: Behind enemy lines with Giants Wire

