By James Boyd, Charlotte Carroll and Jelani Scott

The New York Giants turned the 2025 NFL Draft on its head while also dashing the Indianapolis Colts’ playoff hopes with a 45-33 victory on Sunday.

The Colts’ loss eliminated Indianapolis (7:9) from playoff contention.

The Giants (3-13) picked up their first win at MetLife Stadium in their final home game of the season, thanks to the career days of quarterback Drew Lock and rookie wide receiver Malik Nabers.

Lock had a near-perfect passer rating (155.3), 309 passing yards and five total touchdowns – four passing and one rushing. Nabers’ Week 17 performance (seven catches, 171 yards and two touchdowns) gave the wideout his first 1,000-yard season. The Giants added three defensive takeaways and their first kickoff return TD since 2015.

While the win gave the Giants a rare highlight for 2024, the aftermath clouds their chances of landing the No. 1 pick in the 2025 NFL Draft. The Giants entered Week 17 as the No. 1 pick, but with the win the Giants put numerous teams back in contention.

Indy’s playoff hopes go up in smoke

The Colts needed to win on Sunday to keep their playoff hopes alive. They failed to deliver and will miss the playoffs for the fourth year in a row.

With just under six minutes left in the second quarter, the Colts fell behind 21-6 and were never able to overcome Lock’s hot start. The Giants QB threw three touchdown passes on the Giants’ first four drives and finished the first half with more touchdowns (three) than incompletions (one).

Colts QB Joe Flacco was hardly as successful. The 39-year-old passer, who filled in for the injured Anthony Richardson (back/foot), completed 26 of 38 passes for 330 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions. His 13-yard and 7-yard TD passes to receivers Alec Pierce and Michael Pittman Jr. cut the Giants’ lead to two points twice in the fourth quarter. But Flacco’s interception with 2:57 left proved crucial.

Midway through the game, Jonathan Taylor tried to get the Colts’ offense under control, but he couldn’t. The running back finished the game with 32 carries for 125 yards and two touchdowns, recording his seventh 100-yard rushing game of the season. – James Boyd, Colts beat writer

Giants’ shot at top pick in jeopardy

The Giants broke a franchise-record 10-game losing streak and avoided going winless at home for the first time since 1974, but that will come at a high price – potentially losing the No. 1 seed with their third win They no longer have control over the first pick. The strength of their schedule will determine the fate of their position.

While players and coaches looked excited, fans in the stands and on social media expressed concern about the possibility of missing out on the winning bid. — Charlotte Carroll, Giants beat writer

Horrible tackling causes Indy to lose

In Indianapolis, the tackling problems that had persisted throughout the season reared their head again at the worst possible time.

Three of the Giants’ touchdowns came after the Colts missed open-field tackles, perhaps most glaringly the Nabers’ 59-yard TD catch in the fourth quarter that gave New York a 35-26 lead. The Giants’ rookie caught the ball near the sideline, and cornerbacks Kenny Moore II and Sam Womack III both failed tackles near the sideline, allowing Nabers to race down the sideline and ultimately grab the win.

The Giants entered Sunday’s game with the NFL’s worst offense, allowing just 14.3 points per game. However, against the Colts, they scored a season-high 35 offensive points as well as a 100-yard kickoff return TD by Ihmir Smith-Marsette to open the second half. Smith-Marsette’s long score marked the Giants’ first kickoff return touchdown since 2015. The Colts’ defense also failed to sack Lock, managing only one QB hit. — Boyd

Required reading

(Photo: Vincent Carchietta / Imagn Images)