2022-23 LIEFL NFC DIVISIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP GAME Minnesota Vikings (4-4) vs New York Giants (6-2)

Long island EFL · January 15, 2023

Minnesota Vikings (4-4) vs. New York Giants (6-2)

NFC DIVISIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP GAME

JANUARY 15, 2023

AHMAD BRADSHAW AND GIANTS OFFENSE TOP VIKINGS 38-35 TO EARN CHANCE TO BEAT 49ERS FOR NFC CHAMPIONSHIP!

The NFC Divisional Championship was a great game between the New York Giants and Minnesota Vikings. Ahmad Bradshaw came up BIG for the Giants with five touches for 336 kick return yards, two of them for 100-yard touchdowns to help advance New York to the NFC Championship Game to play the high-powered San Francisco 49ers!

(Long Island Electric Football League, Long Island, NY. January 14, 2023). Thanks for reading! It would be a mistake to underestimate any team in this Long Island Electric Football Tournament. The teams who are supposed to be here are here. They earned the spot to compete hard until we have a winner, and after watching the Kansas City Chiefs high-powered offense beat the Buffalo Bills 56-52, we know they are a fierce contender for this year's AFC Championship Game. Coach Johnny Freeport Chucker said, "I am pulling for Zoo-York's Chiefs. I am tired of watching Miami and Billy O'C. He's too old school and it's time for Zoo to dish out a beating to those Dolphins. I predict a Kansas City and San Francisco Super Bowl. That is a major change in the league proving the extreme power of the LIEFL Draft. I would say every single team in this league is competitive. It's loaded with talent. Just because the Saints lost six games, doesn't mean they are a poor team, not in this league anyway. I am rooting BIG for KC! Pizz will have these Giants ready today and Levi Vick is getting respect in the league. (Laughing) He's only lost, like what, 30 games since he's been playing with us."

Long Island Sports Hall of Fame Inductee, historian Andrew Slawson said, "You could not find four better teams in these matchups. Kansas City and San Francisco have been perfect. I wouldn't want to be the team on the other end facing these two teams. They are two of the most explosive teams in the league right now and I think these are the best matchups ever. The Giants can neutralize a team, but as I'm thinking that I'm just thinking Miami's Clayton and Duper combination for the Dolphins will make for an unbelievable game with the Chiefs and Priest Holmes and Tyreek Hill. That's going to be a high scoring game unless Miami can keep the ball on the ground against the Kansas City defense. The 49ers are so tough and they match up perfectly with the Giants. Bradshaw versus Jerry Rice, wow! Then you have Dwight Clark and Ricky Watters to compliment the 49ers offense. The Giants have the best offense in the league and they've won seven games also, so that is going to be such a great game because you have for the Giants the best offensive player in the league in Ahmad Bradshaw, whose been amazing in the clutch so far! The big question is, who's going to crumble in the big game?"

GAME SUMMARY:

KICKOFF!

Tremendous excitement is mounting in the Long Island Electric Football League as the AFC and NFC Championship Games are now set!

It's the Miami Dolphins (7-2) versus the Kansas City Chiefs (6-3) in the AFC Championship Game and in the NFC Championship Game it's the New York Giants (7-2) versus the San Francisco 49ers (6-3)! If you've been following the LIEFL playoffs the mounting excitement is with good reason for these four explosive teams!

LIEFL Offensive Player of the Year Ahmad Bradshaw lived up to his season success coming through for the New York Giants, not once, but two times in todays’ game! On the opening kickoff Bradshaw returned the ball to the Giants own 40-yard line when he was hit hard by Minnesota lineman Jim Marshall. It only took two plays for LIEFL All-Pro lineman George Martin and company to get Saquon Barkley into the endzone. Barkley and the Giants offense picked up where they left off from last game, beating the Washington Redskins in the NFC Wild Card Game 38-35!

Barkley ran for a 2-yard run on first down, and then he exploded for a 58-yard touchdown on second down to give his New York Giants a 7-0 lead, with11:33 to go in the first quarter. Note the football in Barkley's hands. Commissioner Billy O'C made them Brown with two-coats from a new Sharpie Brown Marker!

Vikings star kick returner and running back Adrian Peterson returned the ball 36-yards, hit hard by Giants defender on special teams, Ahmad Bradshaw. On the Vikings first play from scrimmage, they were stopped on the run but on the next play, Peterson exploded 64-yards down the left sideline to tie the game 7-7, with 6:53 remaining in the first quarter! Coach Pizz is playing with his Giants, and second year coach Levi Vick is playing with the Vikings.

Unbelievable! Ahmad Bradshaw returned the ball 70-yards on the ensuing kick return. On first down, running back Saquon Barkley ran a 30-yard end-around for his second touchdown untouched to make the score 14-7 Giants, with four-minutes to play in the first quarter! Pizz and his Giants came armed and ready! The question remains, can either of these teams handle the high-powered offense of San Francisco, who awaits the winner of this game between the Giants and Vikings.

Adrian Peterson ran back a fast 44-yard kick return as the two-minute warning sounded off. On first down, Adrian Peterson ran 19 yards to the New York 37-yard line with 1:11 remaining in the quarter as a time clock ticked away. The first quarter closed with Adrian Peterson running for another first down, 11 yards to the Giants 26-yard line to end the first quarter.

On the next play Adrian Peterson ran for another first down to the Giants 11, and then the defense for the Giants stopped him on the next two runs. Vikings Coach Levi Vick passed on third down connecting with Chris Carter who was wide open from broken coverage, and he was too fast for Giants linebacker Pepper Johnson to chase down, as Carter darted into the endzone for the score, tying the game at 14-14 with 9:55 remaining in the half!

The man has had some season! The Giants won't be happy until they win another NFC Championship which is a sore subject for Coach Pizz. Pizz had the chance back in 2008, to win Super Bowl XI, but one man stood in his way, Oakland Raiders kick returner Dave Casper, who beat the New York Giants in overtime with a 100-yard kick return to win in overtime! Coach Pizz said, “That is not going to happen today because this is a much better team than my 2008 team, thanks to the draft.”

With the score tied 14-14, Ahmad Bradshaw ran back an incredible electrifying 100-yard kick return for a touchdown, his 8^th of the season, to put the New York Giants ahead 21-14, with 8:11 remaining in the half on a spectacular run by Bradshaw right down the sideline making the tilt at about the 44-yard line and then boogying through a tight hole into the endzone! Wow!

Adrian Peterson returned a blazing 74-yard kick return for the Vikings. But on Minnesota’s first two plays Peterson was stopped, so on third down after losing 15 yards, the Vikings aired it out to Sammy White, but the receiver was spun by his own man which turned his direction toward the sideline, preventing the Vikings from obtaining the first down. This was a costly play for Minnesota at the 23-yard line forcing a 4th downplay. The Vikings were not going to risk the run, so they decided to kick the field goal from the 23-yard line to make the score 21-17, with 1:53 remaining and a half! The Giants called their first time out.

With a wide-open field ahead of him, LIEFL All-Pro Carl Eller, who was incredible in the Vikings-Panthers game, made a sensational tackle coming all the way from the left side of field to tackle Ahmad Bradshaw at the 34-yard line! Bradshaw was literally gone for the touchdown if not for Eller making the tackle. On the Giants first play from scrimmage Coach Pizz aired it out to Odell Beckham Jr., OBJ< for a stunning 66-yard touchdown play to make the score 28-17 Giants, with 1:24 remaining in the half as the Vikings call their last time out for the half!

With the half coming to a close Adrian Peterson returned a 47-yard kickoff for Minnesota, but time was winding down on the clock and Minnesota could not set up fast enough to get another play off, so the Vikings were forced to kick a 53-yard field goal to end the half with the New York Giants in the lead 28-20 going into the third quarter!

To start the third quarter the Vikings will receive the football.

Adrian Peterson again returned the ball 30-yards to start the third quarter, and the Vikings moved the football with two tough runs of 5-yards and an 11-yards by Peterson. The Giants stopped the Vikings twice, but on three other runs Minnesota landed at the 22-yard line with Adrian Peterson bullying his way. In this drive, Minnesota used up 13 minutes on the clock, bringing the third quarter to the 2-minute warning with the score still 28-20, Giants in the lead!

The Giants may have scored a lot of points this year which led the LIEFL, but they gave up a lot of points also (138). The New York defense then saw a combined four straight tackles by defensive tackle David Diehl, and LIEFL All-Pro lineman George Martin, losing 13-yards for the Vikings. Minnesota couldn't seem to move the football beyond that 22-yard line, forcing a third down pass situation as the third quarter ended!

What a great drive by the Vikings who after several runs battled from that 22-yard line. It took Coach Levi Vick to make a beautiful pass to Chris Carter for a 34-yard touchdown with the score 28-26, Giants still in the lead! The Vikings had no choice but to go for a two-point conversion to tie the game. Minnesota almost lost the opportunity with a lot of pressure on the quarterback until the star of the Vikings-Panthers game, Chuck Foreman broke Free in the end zone to score the two points to tie the game at 28-28, with 12:14 remaining in the game! Foreman has been such a clutch player for Minnesota!

Giants superstar Ahmad Bradshaw wasted no time at all, Bradshaw exploded on a sensational and electrifying 100-yard kick return, his second of the game! What an unbelievable run! Bradshaw ran so fast that he looked like he was going to go out of bounds at the 40-yard line, but the speed of the board made him turn inward, just missing Adrian Peterson. Bradshaw broke Free for the touchdown with 11:06 remaining in the game with the Giants retaking the lead, 35-28!

The Vikings switched it up. Minnesota handed the next kick return to Sammy White, who returned the football 76 yards! On first down the Giants stopped Peterson from gaining any yardage, pushing the Vikings for a 5-yard loss, pushing Minnesota back to the 29-yard line.

Finally on third down Sammy White broke Free at the 26-yard line into the endzone for the touchdown to tie the score 35-35, with just 4:22 remaining in the game.

On the Giants next kickoff return, the star of the game Ahmad Bradshaw ran the ball out of bounds at the 26-yard line with the score tied 35-35. New York worked inch-by-inch to kill the clock and force the Vikings to use their timeouts. Brilliant play-calling by Pizz as the 2-minute warning sounded!

The Giants ran down the clock and left the rest to Saquon Barkley who exploded with a 27-yard first down from scrimmage! On second down, the Giants were pounded by the “Purple-People-Eaters” Alan Paige, Jim Marshall, and John Randle who pushed New York back to the 50, but on 3rd down Barkley exploded with a wide-open hole, then he got turned by his own man and ran into Jim Marshall for the first down at the 31-yard line for the Giants with 11 seconds left in the game with no timeouts remaining and in dramatic fashion, the Giants kick the field goal to win the game 38-35 in another spectacular showdown!

The New York Giants will play San Francisco for the NFC championship Game.

What a tremendous championship battle we have to look forward to and the Vikings will be back next year! The Giants did a tremendous amount of damage with their 12 touches for 535 yards and five touchdowns two of them 100-yard kick returns by Bradshaw. Minnesota played a great game right to the final seconds Adrian Peterson had 25 touches for 369-yards with a touchdown and he had 20 rushes for 138 yards on the ground with a 64-yard run. In addition, Peterson returned 231 yards on kickoffs, one of them was 74 yarder, but it wasn't enough to beat the Giants.