Imperfect Giants: Perfect Ending

Imperfect Giants: Perfect Ending

[paypal_donation_button]Imperfect Giants: Perfect Ending

The talk of the 2007 NFL regular season were not the New York Giants. Instead, because of what occurred after their season opener against the New York Jets which began “Spygate”, the New England Patriots became the talk of the league, and more attention would be paid to the Patriots as they pursued a perfect undefeated season.

The Giants, on the other hand, were anything but perfect to start the season. Going into regular season play, the Giants resigned key free agent offensive lineman Shaun O’Hara to keep the offensive line in tact, but they lost runningback Tiki Barber to retirement on February 12, 2007. On April 28 and 29, the Giants made prudent picks in the 2007 NFL Draft, selecting players like cornerback Aaron Ross from Texas, wide receiver Steve Smith from the University of South California, tight end Kevin Boss from Western Oregon, safety Michael Johnson from Arizona and runningback Ahmed Bradshaw from Marshall.

The Giants had a disappointing start to the regular season as they went 0-2, losing to the Dallas Cowboys 45-35 on September 9 and then to the Green Bay Packers at home 35-13 on September 16. Thankfully for the Giants, they would turn things around by then going on a 6-game winning streak that spanned from September 23 to October 28. Some of their most impressive wins during this streak occurred on October 15 in Week 6, defeating the Atlanta Falcons on Monday Night Football 31-10, and then in Week 7 on October 21 they defeated the San Francisco 49ers 33-15.

The Giants then took a step back against the Minnesota Vikings in Week 12 on November 25 as they would lose by the score of 41-14, dropping them to a 7-4 record at that point. The next 2 weeks proved to be very helpful for New York as they would rally to secure close victories against the Chicago Bears on December 2 and the Philadelphia Eagles on December 9. The Giants beat the Bears 21-16 and then beat the Eagles 16-13.

The New York Giants would be the last obstacle for the New England Patriots to overcome to secure a perfect 16-0 regular season as the Patriots traveled to Giants Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey on December 29. Though they put in a valiant effort, the Giants would fall to the Patriots 38-35 in Week 17.

Starting every game for the Giants, quarterback Eli Manning went 297 for 529 in pass attempts for the regular season, obtaining a 56.1% in completions and throwing for 3,336 yards and 23 touchdowns. Manning also threw 20 interceptions. Runningback Brandon Jacobs anchored New York’s running game as he rushed for 1,009 yards and 4 rushing touchdowns to go along with 23 receptions for 174 yards and 2 touchdown receptions. Runningback Derrick Ward also contributed to the rushing attack as he ran for 602 yards and 3 rushing touchdowns as well as getting 26 receptions for 179 yards and a touchdown reception.

Tight end Jeremy Shockey had 57 receptions for 619 yards and 3 touchdowns. However, Shockey would be lost for the remainder of the season as he went down with an injuries on December 16 against the Washington Redskins. Shockey suffered a fractured fibula and damage to his ankle, and Kevin Boss would fill in for Shockey as the starting tight end the rest of the way.

Wide receiver Plaxico Burress had 70 receptions for 1,025 yards and 12 touchdowns. Wide receiver Amani Toomer had 59 receptions for 760 yards and 3 touchdowns.

The Giants finished the 2007 NFL season with a 10-6 record, finishing in 2nd place in the NFC East division and clinching the #5 seed in the NFC Playoffs. As a wild card, they traveled to Raymond James Stadium on January 6 to face the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the Wild Card Game, and the Giants would pull out a 24-14 win. Eli Manning had a solid performance, going 20 for 27 in pass attempts for 185 yards and threw 2 touchdowns.

The Giants then traveled to Texas Stadium in Arlington to face the Dallas Cowboys in the NFC Divisional Round on January 13, 2008, and they would pull out a 21-17 win. Eli Manning went 12 for 18 in pass attempts for 163 yards and threw 2 touchdowns. Amani Toomer had a 52-yard touchdown reception in the first quarter.

In the NFC Championship Game on January 20, the Giants traveled up to Lambeau Field to face the Green Bay Packers in sub-zero weather. Though Eli Manning went 21 for 40 in pass attempts for 251 yards and Plaxico Burress had 11 receptions for 151 yards, this wouldn’t be their night as the Giants heavily relied on their running game. In 21 rushing attempts, Brandon Jacobs had 67 yards and ran for 1 touchdown. In 16 rushing attempts, Ahmed Bradshaw had 63 yards and ran for 1 touchdown. Kicker Lawrence Tynes scored 3 field goals, including the game-winner in overtime to propel the Giants into the Super Bowl by the score of 23-20.

In Super Bowl XLII on February 3, 2008, the New York Giants would get another shot at spoiling the New England Patriots’ pursuit of perfection, and this would turn out to be a classic encounter. The Patriots entered the Super Bowl as 12-point favorites, but the Giants started the game with the longest drive in the history of the Super Bowl, marching down 77 yards in 16 plays and taking 9:59 of time while also converting 3 third down plays. However, they would be held to a Lawrence Tynes field goal.

New England runningback Laurence Maroney returned the next kickoff for 43 yards to start the first Patriots drive on their 43-yard line. Maroney would punch in a 1-yard touchdown run in the 2nd quarter to give the Patriots a 7-3 lead. Maroney would have 4 kickoff returns for 94 yards in the Super Bowl.

The 3rd quarter of Super Bowl XLII was a defensive struggle as neither team would be able to score. Patriots quarterback Tom Brady went 29 for 48 in pass attempts for 266 yards and threw for 1 touchdown. However, Brady would be pressured all day by New York’s defense, especially by the “NASCAR Package” that they implemented by having 4 defensive ends attack. Defensive end Justin Tuck played a key role in keeping Tom Brady at bay as he sacked Brady twice and forced a fumble.

To begin the 4th quarter, Eli Manning completed a 45-yard pass to Kevin Boss, which led to 3 rushing attempts by Ahmed Bradshaw for 13 yards, a 17-yard Steve Smith reception, and a 5-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver David Tyree with 11:10 remaining to give the Giants a 10-7 lead.

The Patriots stormed back with an impressive drive that would be capped off by a 6-yard touchdown pass from Tom Brady to wide receiver Randy Moss with 2:42 remaining. The New York Giants then got the ball back with 2:39 remaining on their 17-yard line and had all 3 of their timeouts. Their final drive featured Eli Manning completing an 11-yard pass to Amani Toomer, and then Manning went back to Toomer for a 9-yard completion on a 3rd down and 10 play. Brandon Jacobs ran up the middle for 2 yards on 4th and 1 to keep the drive going, and then Eli had a 5-yard run of his own.

On 3rd and 5 with 1:15 remaining in the game, the Giants executed one of the most memorable plays in Super Bowl history as Manning spun around to get away from New England defenders and then threw a 32-yard pass to David Tyree, who jumped over Patriots safety Rodney Harrison and pinned the football against the crown of his helmet as he fell back. Steve Smith then had a 12-yard reception 3 plays later, and finally with 0:39 remaining, Plaxico Burress caught a 13-yard pass for a touchdown, beating Patriots cornerback Ellis Hobbs off a slant-and-go route to put the Giants up 17-14. The defense then held off one last Patriots drive to pull off one of the biggest upsets in sports history. The New York Giants won Super Bowl XLII, a perfect ending to an otherwise imperfect season.