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"It’s the greatest victory in the history of the franchise," says New York Giants president and chief executive officer JOHN MARA
about the team’s win in Super Bowl XLII. "The first Super Bowl was special, the second one was special, but I think this one tops
both of them. Look at the adversity we faced this season and how far we have come."
How far did the Giants come?
After opening the season with two losses and being outscored 80-48, the Giants found themselves trailing the division rival
Washington Redskins 17-3 on the road at halftime. An 0-3 start was staring the team in the face.
However, a second-half comeback and a goal-line stand by New York’s defense changed the fortunes of the team.
"That was an amazing way to win a game," recalls quarterback ELI MANNING. "You have to give a lot of credit to our defense for
hanging tough. To get a goal-line stand to win a game, you can’t beat that."
That win propelled the Giants as they won six consecutive games after the 0-2 start and eventually led the team to a Super Bowl
championship. New York became just the third team in NFL history to win the Super Bowl after opening the season with back-toback
losses, joining the 1993 Dallas Cowboys and 2001 New England Patriots.
On Kickoff Weekend 2007, the Giants allowed 45 points to the Dallas Cowboys and lost at Texas Stadium.
The Super Bowl XLII champion NEW YORK GIANTS bounced back and won an NFL single-season record
10 consecutive road games last season (including the playoffs), going 7-1 on the road during the regular
season in which they traveled 15,618 miles.
The Giants’ unprecedented road success, which included a game in London, resulted in
a level of confidence and momentum that spurred them on their Super Bowl run.
"We're all we have when we're on the road," said now-retired Giants defensive end
MICHAEL STRAHAN (left) during the season. "And it's a long plane trip back when you
don’t win. Guys refuse to let that happen. For some reason, the road works for us."
Nine other NFL football teams were previously tied at 8 consecutive
road game victories.
"We played well on the road last year," says head coach TOM COUGHLIN. "We bonded together. We had good leadership and
good character. We responded well to adversity. That record (of winning 10 consecutive road games) shows the way we went
about our work. The road signified for us the coming together of a team. The only people that cared about us were the guys
standing there on our sideline. So we rode that emotion all the way through."
Defensive end JUSTIN TUCK credits the preparation and team mentality for the team’s success away from Giants Stadium last
year.
"It was due to our warrior mentality," says Tuck. "It seemed like we played better when our backs were against the wall. I hope
we can continue that."
The Giants, who finished the regular season with a 10-6 record and clinched a Wild Card berth, were the 10th non-division winner
to reach the Super Bowl and the sixth to win the championship game.
|
SEASON |
TEAM |
SUPER BOWL RESULT |
|
1969 | Kansas City | Defeated Minnesota in Super Bowl IV, 23-7 | |
1975 | Dallas | Lost to Pittsburgh in Super Bowl X, 21-17 | |
1980 | Oakland | Defeated Philadelphia in Super Bowl XV, 27-10 | |
1985 | New England | Lost to Chicago in Super Bowl XX, 46-10 | |
1992 | Buffalo | Lost to Dallas in Super Bowl XXVII, 52-17 | |
1997 | Denver | Defeated Green Bay in Super Bowl XXXII, 31-24 | |
1999 | Tennessee | Lost to St. Louis in Super Bowl XXXIV, 23-16 | |
2000 | Baltimore | Defeated New York Giants in Super Bowl XXXV, 34-7 | |
2005 | Pittsburgh | Defeated Seattle in Super Bowl XL, 21-10 | |
2007 | New York Giants | Defeated New England in Super Bowl XLII, 17-14 | |
"Winning the Super Bowl is an unbelievable feeling," says New York Giants Quarterback Eli Manning. "We always believed and had faith in each other and our
team. We found ways to win. We believed and we made it happen. Now we have to come in to the next season and get better.
We need to look at the things we have not been as good at and improve."
SACK ATTACK
A quarterback sack is one of the most exciting plays in football. Not
only does it get the fans and the defensive team excited, but its effect
on the actual outcome of a game can be enormous.
No one is more aware of that than the Super Bowl XLII champion New
York Giants.
With a league-leading 53 sacks last season, the Giants’ key to success
was their ferocious pass-rush. The importance of a solid pass-rush
was clearly evident in the Super Bowl, where the Giants stymied the
seemingly unstoppable Patriots’ offensive attack by constantly bringing
pressure and recording five sacks.
"We never had a number on it, but all week long we said that even if
Patriots quarterback Tom Brady got the ball out, even if he completed
the pass, we needed to hit him to somehow disrupt him," said Giants
defensive coordinator STEVE SPAGNUOLO .
Giants defensive end JUSTIN TUCK, who led the Giants with two
sacks in the game, echoed his coach’s sentiments.
"Everybody was getting after it," Tuck said. "It was a collective will. We knew what the focus was going to be for us to win this
game and that was definitely getting a lot of heat on Brady early and often."
As Tuck alluded to, a good pass-rush can do more than just cause a loss of yards – it can ruin an offense’s timing, and throw a
team’s game-plan off track.
Last year, the top five teams in sacks combined for a 60-20 record (.750) and all five advanced to the postseason.
Teams with the most sacks in 2007
|
TEAM |
SACKS |
RECORD |
RESULT |
|
New York Giants | 53 | 10-6 | Won Super Bowl XLII | |
New England Patriots | 47 | 16-0 | Advanced to Super Bowl XLII | |
Dallas Cowboys | 46 | 13-3 | Advanced to Divisional Round | |
Seattle Seahawks | 45 | 10-6 | Advanced to Divisional Round | |
San Diego Chargers | 42 | 11-5 | Advanced to AFC Championship | |
From Number 1 NFL Draft Pick to Super Bowl
In the Super Bowl era, there have been 16 quarterbacks selected with the No. 1 overall pick in
the draft, the most at any position. Seven of those quarterbacks taken No. 1 overall have led
their teams to the Super Bowl – including the past two Super Bowl MVPs: ELI MANNING (NY
Giants, XLII) and PEYTON MANNING (Indianapolis, XLI) – and have combined for a 13-4
(.765) record in the championship game.
Quarterbacks Selected Number 1 Who Have Led Teams to Super Bowl
|
QUARTERBACK |
SUPER BOWL TEAM |
YEAR DRAFTED |
SUPER BOWL RECORD
| |
Terry Bradshaw | Pittsburgh | 1970 | 4-0 | |
Troy Aikman | Dallas | 1989 | 3-0 | |
Jim Plunkett | Oakland/LA Raiders | 1971 | 2-0 | |
Eli Manning | NY Giants | 2004 | 1-0 | |
Peyton Manning | Indianapolis | 1998 | 1-0 | |
John Elway | Denver | 1983 | 2-3 | |
Drew Bledsoe | New England | 1993 | 0-1 | |
Eli Manning became just the sixth different quarterback selected No. 1 overall to be named the MVP of the Super Bowl. Pro
Football Hall of Fame quarterback TERRY BRADSHAW won the award twice as he led the Pittsburgh Steelers to back-to-back
championships in 1978 and 1979.
Quarterbacks Selected Number 1 to be Named Super Bowl MVP
|
QUARTERBACK |
TEAM |
YEAR |
SUPER BOWL
| |
Terry Bradshaw | Pittsburgh | 1978 | XIII | |
Terry Bradshaw | Pittsburgh | 1979 | XIV | |
Jim Plunkett | Oakland | 1980 | XV | |
Troy Aikman | Dallas | 1992 | XXVII | |
John Elway | Denver | 1998 | XXXIII | |
Peyton Manning | Indianapolis | 2006 | XLI | |
Eli Manning | NY Giants | 2007 | XLII | |
Following in his older brother’s footsteps, New York Giants quarterback ELI MANNING guided the Giants to victory and was
named the MVP of Super Bowl XLII, one year after brother PEYTON won the award while leading the Indianapolis Colts to a
championship. Eli and Peyton are the first set of brothers to be named Super Bowl MVPs and the first quarterback brothers to win
a Super Bowl.
"Nobody pulls harder for Eli than I do," says Peyton. "I watch all of his games and I pull hard for him, and I’ve just been extremely
proud of him."
The Manning brothers provided exciting bookends to the 2007 NFL calendar, with Peyton’s Colts opening the regular season with
a Thursday night primetime win over the Saints and Eli’s Giants knocking off the previously undefeated New England Patriots for a
thrilling Super Bowl victory.
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Super Bowl XLII:
One of the Greatest Games of All Time
He ought to know. He’s a player in the NFL who knows its history. He’s another Manning maybe you’ve heard of -- Peyton -- and that was his summary of Super Bowl XLII last Sunday night in Glendale, Arizona:
"One of the greatest games of all time."
In the game, his brother, New York Giants quarterback ELI MANNING, engineered one of the most memorable late-game-winning drives in Super Bowl history for a 17-14 victory over the New England Patriots at University of Phoenix Stadium. That drive included what many are calling the greatest play in Super Bowl history.
Continue ...
Super Bowl XLII:
New York Giants 17 New England Patriots 14
Road Warrior Giants Bring It Home
Undefeated Destiny Disrupted for the 18 -1 New England Patriots
With 2:49 left in Super Bowl XLII it seemed to be yet another perfectly scripted comeback victory for the
New England Patriots as Tom Brady connected with Randy Moss for a 7-yard TD completion. However, the
Giants went off script as Eli Manning drove the Giants 83 yards for the game winning touchdown.
Super Bowl XLII MVP Eli Manning ended the 12 play 83 yard winning drive when he found Plaxico Burress (17)
in the corner of the end zone with 35 seconds to play.
Continue ...
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