Sunday's Giants-Saints tilt has something for everyone. Both teams are ranked among the top three in yards gained per game, so offensive fanatics will get their fill. And those who love defense will note that the Giants are allowing fewer yards per game than any other team - and that the Saints are a very respectable sixth in this category.

Of greatest interest, however, will be the game's ramifications on the NFC playoff race. Both clubs are undefeated, and neither looks to have any glaring weaknesses. A head-to-head win could be the difference between a No. 1 or a No. 2 seed in the playoffs.

Much has changed since the teams last played on Christmas Eve 2006, and a trip down memory lane is illustrative. At the time,   both franchises looked to be going in opposite directions.

After surrendering an early touchdown to the Giants, the Saints scored 30 unanswered points and left no doubt as to which was the better club. Strong winds neutralized New Orleans' passing game, but the Saints adjusted nicely, leaning heavily on a running game that rolled for 236 yards. Rookie RB Reggie Bush, in the midst of an excellent first season, racked up a career-high 126 rushing yards.

Meanwhile, the Giants could get little going on offense. QB Eli Manning was erratic, completing just 9-of-25 passes. The loss was New York's sixth in seven games, and only the struggles of the rest of the NFC was keeping the Giants alive for a wild-card berth, which they would eventually earn the next week. Nonetheless, the Giants didn't look anything like a Super Bowl contender. The Saints, with a potent, versatile offense and a respectable defense, did.

But the fortunes of both franchises would change the following season. The Giants, after starting 0-2, found their best stride, as the fruits of years of good drafts began to blossom. They would upset the Patriots in Super Bowl XLII, and Manning, so unsteady earlier in his career, was cool, calm and collected with pro football's biggest game on the line. The Giants followed with a 12-4 mark in 2008, proof that they were going to be players for NFL titles for the foreseeable future.

Meanwhile, the Saints would stumble at the beginning of 2007, losing four straight as their defense fell apart, and the deficit would prove too much to overcome. And the '08 campaign was just as frustrating for them; their inconsistency was their hallmark.

But here they are again with a strong defense to complement the offense, led by spectacular QB Drew Brees. It is like 2006 all over again, only this time, the Saints may be even better. Certainly the Giants are. It could make for a memorable game, considering what is at stake - and how far the teams have come since they last met.