Tampa, FL -- (Sports Network) - Eli Manning helped put seven years of playoff frustration to rest, completing 20-of-27 passes for 185 yards and two touchdowns, as the New York Giants topped the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, 24-14, in an NFC wild card matchup at Raymond James Stadium.

"We had been in the playoffs the last three seasons, and I haven't played really well in the two games before," Manning said. "Just to come in here and play well, give my team a chance to win the game, and make some big plays, that was quite the situation to be in. Now you can't just be satisfied with what you're doing. It's about the bigger picture and to keep this thing going."

Amani Toomer caught seven balls for 74 yards and a score for the Giants (11-6), who have won four of six overall. The franchise had not won a playoff game since a 41-0 romp over Minnesota in the NFC Championship Game on January 14, 2001.

Ahmad Bradshaw gained 66 rushing yards on 17 carries. Brandon Jacobs added 34 yards on the ground with a score, along with two receptions including a TD catch for New York, which heads to NFC East rival Dallas next Sunday.

Jeff Garcia threw for 207 yards, one TD and a pair of interceptions on 23- of-39 passing for the Buccaneers (9-8), who finished the season with four losses in their last five games.

Earnest Graham picked up 63 rushing yards and a touchdown on 18 carries, and Michael Pittman caught five balls for 62 yards in defeat.

"It's tough to end on that note, we didn't play very well," Graham said. "We started well, but the rest of the game didn't go our way. Then, we just flat out got beat. There's not much else to say."

On a drive which took 8:37 off the clock and bridged the final two quarters, the Giants assumed a solid 24-7 advantage when Manning hit Toomer in the end zone for a four-yard TD.

Down by 17 with eight minutes left in regulation, the Buccaneers finally sprung to life. Garcia led a no-huddle offense 88 yards in 12 plays, ending on his six-yard strike to Alex Smith to make it a 10-point game with 3:25 left.

The Bucs' final drive of the contest was short-circuited when R.W. McQuarters made a leaping pick of a Garcia pass down the right side with 1:53 to play. Replay reversed the original call of incomplete, as the review determined that the nimble cornerback managed to get both feet in before falling backwards out-of-bounds.

Manning and his charges then ran off all but the final seven seconds. After a punt, Garcia's desperation throw into coverage on the final play from the Tampa 21 fell incomplete, keeping the Bucs winless in the postseason since their victory in Super Bowl XXXVII.

Tampa got going on its second possession, taking a 7-0 lead with 1:49 to play in the opening quarter on Graham's spinning two-yard score. Graham rushed for 27 yards and also caught one pass for 14 yards and a key first down on the drive.

Working with a short field early in the second quarter, the Giants responded to tie the game on Jacobs' five-yard catch-and-run just about five minutes in. Toomer helped the eight-play, 53-yard drive along on the previous play by hauling in a 13-yard pass on a 3rd-and-9 from the Tampa 18.

After holding the Bucs, New York came right back on its following drive. A seven-play, 65-yard march ended when Jacobs barrelled in from the four to give the Giants a 14-7 edge.

That touchdown lead stood at halftime as the Big Blue defense held Tampa on the ensuing possession at the Giants' 45-yard-line.

"I give all the credit in the world to those guys who came out and played," said Jacobs of the second-quarter turnaround. "They played hard, flew around, they had a nose for the ball. We had to get Plaxico Burress and Amani Toomer involved, and those guys gave us a better chance to win the game."

The Giants were the beneficiaries of the first turnover of the game, as Michael Spurlock began the second half by coughing up the ball on the kickoff.

Cornerback Corey Webster, filling in for the injured Sam Madison, corralled the ball at the Bucs' 30-yard-line. Nine plays later, Lawrence Tynes hit a 25- yard field goal for a 17-7 game with a little more than five minutes played in the third.

Webster came up big once more on the Bucs' next drive, as he stepped in front of a Garcia throw intended for Joey Galloway in the end zone. However, both sides failed to generate offense through the end of the quarter and the visitors led by 10 heading into the final 15 minutes.

"Like I said, we were able to move the ball early," noted Smith. "We did a great job on the ground, and Garcia was making great passes downfield. For whatever reason, we just weren't able to sustain the momentum. It happens. It's a 60 minute game."

Game Notes:

The Giants lead the all-time series, 11-6, but this was the first postseason meeting between the teams...New York guard David Diehl left the game late in the third quarter with heat exhaustion and did not return...Buccaneers safety Tanard Jackson left the game in the third quarter with a leg injury related to heat exhaustion and did not return...The Giants improved to 8-1 on the road this season.