Carl had no idea what to expect going into Super Bowl XLII. What ended up happening was one of the greatest nights of my sporting life. Somehow, (after recovering from a long night of celebrating and taking off work the next day) I sat down and attempted to retell this amazing story in its entirety. BE AWARE, this story is going to last a little while. Get a drink, settle in, and take a few minutes as I tell how the New York Football Giants defied the odds to become World Champions and I how I rediscovered my love for this team.
Originally written February 4, 2008
Perfection is a noun defined in Webster’s Dictionary as having several meanings. One of them is the following:
An exemplification of pure excellence.
However, another definition struck a chord with me:
Freedom from fault or defect.
Through 18 games, the New England Patriots were just that. Perfect. Undefeated. It had never happened in the history of professional football. Leading up to Super Bowl XLII, that was all one was inundated with. Every television show, every newspaper, internet, word on the street. It was everywhere and the only thing that anyone could discuss.
If you did not know any better, perhaps the Patriots were playing against themselves in the Super Bowl instead of the New York Giants.
When Gibril Wilson knocked Tom Brady’s fourth down pass down and out of bounds with one second remaining, one team’s dream of a perfect season ended. The Giants dream of a perfect upset was realized.
Going back to the dictionary to look up the word “upset” shows this meaning:
To defeat unexpectedly.
How ironic.
Putting this victory into words is still indescribable. I will attempt to do so, but finding the superlatives and adjectives to explain possibly the greatest upset in the history of football, if not professional sports, along with one of the greatest nights of sporting fandom is going to be challenging, but it will be the most fun I will probably ever have telling a story.
This long journey started nearly a month ago in Tampa, carried through an amazing upset in Dallas and through extreme subzero (-25) temperatures in Green Bay had brought the Giants to this game and this moment.
All season, the Giants gave new meaning to the term “enigma”.
Eli Manning, who just six weeks ago (yes, six) I felt to be regressing precipitously, now had done a complete 180, now regarded as a “Super Bowl quarterback” (which is actually not saying much when you consider that Stan Humphries and Rex Grossman are also of the same distinction).
A defense that I had ridiculed for years using the words “overrated” and “inept”, had been replaced by the words “inspiring” and “heroic”.
Tom Coughlin, the head coach, who fans and media wanted fired just twelve months ago, put off by his miserly ways, facial expressions and sideline meltdowns during games. He had altered his ways to an extent, but never compromising his core principles. Now his team along with himself was better off. People were beginning to have a newer, fonder appreciation for the man.
Younger players like Ahmad Bradshaw, Steve Smith, Justin Tuck and Aaron Ross have established themselves not only as contributors, but also as core players that can be stars in the league.
No longer was this a team where the main faces were that of Michael Strahan, Tiki Barber and Jeremy Shockey. The old was slowly phasing out, as a new core of Giants were taking shape right in front of our eyes.
Gaining a greater appreciation for guys like Brandon Jacobs and Antonio Pierce that backed up their talking on the field while doing a lot of talking off it.
Seeing someone like Corey Webster, for two years looked like a lost soul, suddenly playing the best football of his career. His great play in Tampa shutting down Joey Galloway, to minimizing the effectiveness of Terrell Owens, to physically dominating Donald Driver.
It is unbelievable how much your thoughts can change on everything (and in some cases, everyone) in the span of 30 days.
Now, here this team was victory away from completing perhaps the greatest postseason run in the history of football, and pulling off possibly one of the greatest upsets in sports history. To be honest, I did not expect to win this game going in. All week, I put the percentage of winning around 25 to 30 percent. That is the reason I chose not to fly down to Arizona and spend the money to go the game.
(SIDE NOTE - Why would I spend $2,000 to see what (at the time) more than likely will be a loss anyway? I would not even get a souvenir outside of keeping the ticket stub. If I thought there was a 50 percent chance, it could be justified.)
The Giants were publicly giving the sense of confidence (false bravado perhaps?). Plaxico Burress even went so far as to predict a “23-17” final score and stood by his conviction.
Considering New England has a way to take a slightest jab as a sign of “lack of respect” and feed off it on the field, storm warnings filled the air. Last thing I was looking for was to agitate an 18-0 team and give them any more ammunition than what they already had. Why take on such unnecessary drama?
The night before, just like I did before the Dallas and Green Bay games, I went back and looked at the video from their previous meeting in week 17. What I needed to find was if there was any way possible the Giants could attack Brady and the Patriots offense.
Charting every defensive play for that game, the conclusion was drawn that the defensive actually played very well except for small instances. Randy Moss was being covered well except for the play where Sam Madison came up lame and James Butler was doing…well, we still do not know. Outside of that, the defense played a very good game.
Needing inspiration, I needed to go back to into my past. In my DVD section was Super Bowl XXV the Giants won against the Buffalo Bills that I decided to watch again in its entirety. Unlike the episode of Everybody Loves Raymond where Ray recorded over his wedding with Debra with this game, no such mistake had been made.
What I had taken from that game was the willingness that Bill Belichick (then the Giants defensive coordinator) had to concede the run to the Bills as a trade for slowing their explosive passing game.
Though Thurman Thomas ran wild, it was effective. Offensively, the Giants held the ball for over 40 minutes and rendered Buffalo’s offensive ineffective the entire game.
Seeing both of these games, I began to think that maybe this upset could be possible. My percentage for winning the game had now gone to around 40 percent, which was the best I could ask for. Of course the Patriots were the better team, but they sure were not 12.5 points better as the Las Vegas odds makers proclaimed over the two weeks leading up to the game.
My formula for winning this game was the following:
1. Play “clock ball” much like in Super Bowl XXV
2. Limit New England’s possessions
3. Stop the Patriots on third down
A quick listen to Al Pacino’s “Game of Inches” speech and it was game time.
The Giants won the coin toss and it had already seemed like a slight victory.
In the first game, the offense took the ball on their opening drive and marched down the field on the Patriots defense for a touchdown. This time, it was about controlling the clock and keeping their offense off the field for a long as possible.
Methodically, as Manning would lead the offense down the field, one could not help but notice the length of time of the drive. On four occasions, they converted on third down that kept the clock moving.
This was playing out exactly the way I was hoping. On third down, Manning’s pass was caught for short yardage and Lawrence Tynes came and hit a 32-yard field goal.
Giants 3, Patriots 0
Though I was upset that they could not get a touchdown, the fact that nearly ten minutes of clock was eliminated was a small victory in itself.
Many wondered if Tom Brady was going to play after suffering an apparent ankle injury in their AFC Championship game against San Diego.
Seriously, can people be that stupid?
If you really thought their was a 1% chance he would not play, then you probably believe in the tooth fairy leaving money under your pillow, and Elvis and Tupac being alive. It was just another way for them to bask in what I refer to as “grotesque media whoreness.”
New England ran a very interesting play on their first possession after Laurence Maroney ran the kickoff back to the 44-yard line. They tried to run a fake reverse and three Giants nearly decapitated Brady on the play as the pass went incomplete. Little did I know at the time how much of a tone that one play set for the game.
After that, Brady, as he had done all season, moved their offense down the field, using all of the different weapons in his arsenal. Antonio Pierce was called for pass interference on tight end Ben Watson for not playing the ball in the end zone. Just when it looked like they had them, once again the Patriots got a reprieve. The penalty set the ball at the one-yard line. Two plays later, Maroney, who set up the drive with his return, punched it into the end zone.
Patriots 7, Giants 3
It appeared that the Giants offense was going to respond. However, the drive came to and when Steve Smith had a first down catch in his hands. But he bobbled it and the ball went into the air just enough for cornerback Ellis Hobbs to intercept it and run it back 30 yards.
This was deflating. Having the Patriots on the ropes, in position to answer their touchdown with one with their own and instead turning the ball over. Luckily, the defense was able to hold them to three plays and force a punt.
Danger nearly struck again on the next possession. On a second down play, Ahmad Bradshaw took the shotgun handoff from Manning and fumbled the ball. Linebacker Pierre Woods appeared to come up with the ball immediately. Somehow, Bradshaw was able to snatch the ball out of the hands of Woods and the Giants miraculously retained the football. A game saving play this early? Perhaps.
When you consider that if the referees give the ball to the Patriots, Brady and his offense takes over inside the 40-yard line and likely go up 14-3. Instead, they are lucky enough to punt the ball to them and try to hold them.
With 1:47 left, the Patriots had all three of their timeouts and the ball at the own twelve yard line. As gallant as the defense had played to this point (only seven points), you had to figure that the greatest offense in the history of football was going to manufacture a way to get points before the half.
Their offense got a couple of first downs and moved in the Giants territory. Once again, though the defense made another big play. Tuck, playing as a beast in the half sped past the offensive line, sacked and stripped the ball from Brady. Referees signaled New York ball with ten seconds remaining. Another battle won by the defense going into intermission.
Halftime – Patriots 7, Giants 3
I listened to Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers play during the Super Bowl Halftime Show,
(SIDE NOTE – Is Petty that old? If he is 57 like I was hearing, that is a damn good job of showing it. He must have gotten the same Botox that John Kerry had when he was running for President back in 2004)
I was reflecting on the first half. The offense was moving the ball a bit, though not the same as in the first game. It was obvious that the Patriots defense had made several adjustments from the first game. They were in their territory on three occasions and only got three points out of it. Definitely not a good situation for the Giants, but if you asked me if I would sign up for the score being 7-3 at halftime, I would have injured my hands signing whatever needed my John Hancock.
Defensively, they were amazing. Pressuring Brady and knocking to the ground numerous times. To my count, he has been hit nine times. Sacked on three other occasions. Randy Moss only has one catch. Before that catch by Donte Stallworth, FOX had showed a graphic that they had put up the second fewest yards in a half since Super Bowl XX when the Patriots redefined the word “suckitude” against the Chicago Bears.
It appeared the Giants had forced the Patriots to punt the ball on their opening second half possession. However, Bill Belichick chose to challenge if the Giants had twelve men on the field before the punt. A replay challenge showed that in fact, linebacker Chase Blackburn had yet to leave the playing field prior to the snap of the ball.
Good grief.
Mistakes, mistakes and more mistakes were giving the Patriots chances that they did not deserve.
Again, the Giants defense came up big as Strahan on a third down and seven sacked Brady for a six-yard loss. This put New England from in reasonable field goal range, into a not-so-easy 51-yard attempt on fourth down. To the amazement of some of us watching (including myself), Belichick elected to go for it. Brady’s pass was wide of its target in the end zone out of bounds, and the Giants took over on downs.
(SIDE NOTE – Though I thought they were crazy to kick a field goal at the time, I understand why they chose to make that move. Stephen Gostkowski had not made a field goal longer than 46 yards the entire season. He had missed several field goals in the playoffs and even sent a kickoff out of bounds in this game. Belichick had no trust in him and felt that his “World’s Greatest Offense” could find a way to steal a first down even though the percentages were not in their favor.)
(ANOTHER SIDE NOTE: FOX ran a graphic showing to that point; the Patriots had run 49 plays – 19 for zero or negative yards. Incredible.)
The third quarter was over. Quite possibly, this was the fastest moving Super Bowl game ever. Even more amazing was looking up at the score and finding it still at 7-3 Patriots. If you had the “over” in this game (51), your money was as good as gone. Anyone who had “7” and “3” in the numbers pool was more than likely has cleaned up the money.
15 minutes remained in the season.
As the Patriots were set to punt to begin the fourth quarter, the Giants needed something, anything to get the offense out of the stagnation that New England’s defense had put them in.
It took one play to get it started. Manning found Kevin Boss (an old classic Giants play to the tight end) on a seam pattern down the field that went for 47 yards. Finally, that “something” I was looking for happened. Four plays later, on a play they have run at the goal line the last few years, Manning play faked a run to Bradshaw and found David Tyree on a short post for a five-yard touchdown pass.
Giants 10, Patriots 7
They had the lead now. Boss’s big reception sparked everything. As I was watching the game with my friends that have been with me since that first Sunday in January against Tampa, along with new ones that I made that night, erupted in cheer.
Upset was now officially in the air. The possibility that none of us realistically could have expected was now in front of us, just eleven minutes and five seconds away from happening.
All they had to do was hold on.
It was clear that Brady’s internal passing clock was shortening. He was hearing footsteps and their offensive line seems to have no clue how to stop the defensive front. They would get the ball back with 7:54 remaining, with a possible perfect season in the hands this generations version of Joe Montana.
As the clock continued to move and the Patriots methodically starting moving the ball up the field, I paused for a moment to think about the ending. All week, I had just asked for a good showing. Losing and playing respectable would have been fine for me. Besides, I never expected any of this. To me, this was a bonus. However, as Brady continued to find drive the ball deep into Giants territory, there was some words that Tom Coughlin had mentioned that rang true:
“Nobody remembers the Super Bowl loser.”
Thinking that, I realized how difficult a loss would be to take now. Dominating on defense the entire game, and holding them to 7 points. As the ball rested on the seven-yard line with 3:12 to go, all we were hoping for was to somehow, someway, stop them one more time.
Moss was the target on first-and-goal and Brady’s pass went wide.
On second-and-goal, James Butler knocked down a would-be catch by Wes Welker.
Now it was third down. A stop would force the Patriots to make a difficult decision. Go for it and risk
turning it over. Or kicking a field goal and rely on their defense to hold the Giants offense one more time and get the ball back.
Brady took the shotgun snap on third down. Corey Webster, who was covering Moss, slipped in the end zone and it was an easy touchdown with 2:42 remaining.
Patriots 14, Giants 10
Everyone around me went silent. There were cheers from the other side of the bar from those rooting for New England. My friend Mike was panicking, fearful of defeat. I could not allow myself to think it could end like this. Channeling some famous words Manning used in the Dallas game, I told him exactly what I felt was going to happen:
“We are going to take the ball…we are going to score…and we are going to leave time on the clock.”
This is what every fan of a team hopes for. You watch those old highlights the NFL shows and remember Joe Montana leading his 49ers 92 yards for the winning touchdown against the Bengals in Super Bowl XXIII.
Now, all those years later, here it was. 83 yards separated the Giants from a possible championship and 2:39 left.
Manning’s first pass was an 11-yard throw to Toomer. After misfiring on his next two throws, the offense faced third down and long. Toomer again would make the catch, but came up a half-yard short of the marker. Jacobs (who had been quiet all game) just barely got the first down on fourth down to continue the drive.
Hope was still alive.
A scramble by Manning netted five yards followed by an incompletion. What would happen next is going to go down as one of the greatest plays in sports history.
It was third down. From the shotgun, Manning took the snap. As he moved up in the pocket, three Patriots appeared to converge on him for a sack. Improbably, he escaped the defenders and uncorked a deep ball down the middle of the field. Leaping up was David Tyree, coming down with the pass with his right hand on the ball that was being held by his helmet as he went to the ground with safety Rodney Harrison tugging away at him.
All I could around me was “Holy Shit…he caught it!” I did not think he caught the ball at first, so there was no actual reaction. On questionable plays like that, I assumed the referees were going to review the play to be sure. However, it was signaled “good catch” and the game clock kept moving as the offense was rushing up to the line.
I was curious to hear how Bob Papa described this play on the radio.
Manning take the snap…back to throw…under pressure…avoids the rush…and he’s going to fight out of it…still fights out of it…now throws it deep downfield…wide open Tyree who…MAKES THE CATCH!... at the 24 yard line!...what a play by Manning!…he eluded three sacks…he runs up to Mike Carey and calls a timeout…and what a catch by Tyree with 58 seconds to go.
Unreal.
Two plays later, the Giants faced another third down, this time needing 11 yards. From the shotgun, Manning rolled right and found Smith on the right sideline. Having the presence of mind, he was able to get the extra three yards for the first down at the Patriots 14-yard line.
At this point, I knew the game was there to be taken now. They were 14 yards away from a possible championship. They were right on the doorstep ready to kick it down.
40 seconds showed on the clock. If you really did not believe before, you could not help but to jump on the bandwagon now.
Once again, Manning operated from the shotgun. Belichick decided to send an all out blitz in hopes of forcing an errant throw. He spotted Plaxico Burress, playing on one good leg, badly beating his defender Ellis Hobbs and was all alone in the end zone with 35 seconds remaining.
Giants 17, Patriots 14
Papa: Manning calling signals…takes the snap…looks left…lobs it left…Burress is wide open…TOUCHDOWN GIANTS!…in the left corner of the end zone!…with 35 seconds to go…and the Giants regain the lead!
I had no clue that it was only Burress’ second catch of the night at the time. He caught the first pass of the game and quite fittingly caught the last. The once regarded malcontent battled injuries all season and now was set to be a Super Bowl hero.
Eli Manning, the quarterback who many fans thought would more than likely lead the Giants to the Toilet Bowl, showed the cool confidence of man who was never flustered. Thoughts of him lacking fire, leadership skills or overall talent extinguished. Maybe his whole “ah sucks” persona really has been a mirage all along.
Euphoria ensued all over the place. How sure did I feel that the Giants were going to score? I broke out the video portion of my camera and captured the play and my reaction. The jubilance was so great that my camera was in my hand and I did not show the reaction of everyone celebrating.
Only three “euphoric reaction” moments I have in my sporting life:
1. Game 7 of the 2003 ALCS against the Red Sox when Jorge Posada got that hit in the eighth against Pedro Martinez and then Aaron Boone hit that homerun.
2. Stephane Matteau’s goal in Game 7 of the Eastern Finals for the Rangers against the New Jersey Devils.
3. Larry Johnson’s four-point play against the Indiana Pacers in 1999 at The Garden.
Still…it was not over.
Looking at the TV, I saw there was still 35 seconds to go. There was plenty of time for Brady and his troops to move down and get into field goal range considering they still had three timeouts.
I began to tell people not to look ahead just yet.
“THIS IS NOT OVER!” I remember saying.
“These are still the Patriots!”
Over their dynastic run, New England has always been able to snatch victory from defeat. As the ball rested on the 25 yard line with now 29 seconds to go, this was one final chance to not only derail history, but create some for ourselves. Just like the Dallas game a few weeks ago, it was on the defense to make one final stand.
Brady’s first down pass was incomplete down the right side. Aaron Ross could have picked off the pass, but the receiver was not within range to catch the ball
One down, three to go. 25 seconds left
On second down, pressure came again and Brady was driven down for a sack by rookie Jay Alford (yes, Jay Alford!) for a ten yard loss. It was a punishing sack. Guard Russ Hochstein never had a chance.
At this exact moment, I knew they had it. It was only a matter of time now.
Two down, two to go. 19 seconds left
On third down, Brady rolled to his right and uncorked a deep ball 70 yards downfield for Moss facing double coverage. Corey Webster was able to deflect it just enough to make it incomplete. Moss had a finger on the ball, but Webster, who had been great all playoffs long, made another tremendous play.
Three down, one to go. 10 seconds left
Needing 20 yards, the Giants played most of their defenders back. Brady took the shotgun snap and stepped up in the pocket. He threw another deep pass down the left sideline. Double coverage was there and Gibril Wilson knocked it away out of bounds.
Game over.
Final – Giants 17, Patriots 14
It was over.
Bob Papa’s words in the moment captured everything:
And that is it…the New York Giants…have knocked off the New England Patriots 17-14…as Tom Coughlin gets a Gatorade bath…they get a final stand on the great Tom Brady…and the Giants with the most improbable win in recent memory have won Super Bowl XLII!
The celebration was on. Hugging and jumping around screaming, “We’re World Champions!”
History had been derailed and a different kind of history had been written.
This was our version of the Miracle on Ice. This was our version of Villanova beating Georgetown. Our Douglas-Tyson. Now, the Giants had pulled off a victory that ranks with all of those.
Spagnuolo had orchestrated the greatest defensive game plan in the history of football. Better then Belichick against Buffalo. Better than the Raiders against the Redskins in Super Bowl XVIII. My formula, which was simply a theory going into the game to slow them down, was successful:
Play “clock ball” – The Giants only marginally 30:27 to 29:33. Little did I know the defense would play out of this world.
Limit New England’s possessions – Nine possessions as I hoped. Four of those drives lasted four plays or less.
Stop the Patriots on third down – New England was seven for 14. Sure, they hit on a few plays, but not enough to sustain drives and hurt the Giants.
Amazing.
No one could really believe it. Perhaps the dream would end like most do, the sun would be up, and it would all be for nothing. Just some wacky thought that you never think would happen. To realize that it was real and it could never be taken away.
People that I did not know were now coming up to congratulate me and my other friends. To them, I could not give much of response except to say, “Thank you” and proceed to give them a hug.
Suddenly, our fan base had expanded to more than just a few newly found friends. We shared a bond that we could tell for the rest of our lives. Seeing the team on the platform accepting the Vince Lombardi trophy we again asked ourselves the same question:
“Can you believe this?”
We still could not.
There will be other championship teams in the future. Some of them will be considerably better than this 2007 World Champion Giants team. Nothing (and no team), will ever, ever replicate this. I thought about several players:
Michael Strahan, a veteran of 15 years, finally a champion.
Amani Toomer, like Strahan, had seen the franchises dark days. Now, he too was a champion.
Jeff Feagles, a veteran of over 20 years, celebrating this championship with his family.
I then began to think of my past growing up with this team.
My first Giants game was when I was six years old when they played the Denver Broncos in a massive snow game at old Mile High Stadium. Gary Reasons stopped Bobby Humphrey cold at the goal line on fourth down at the one-yard line to seal a victory.
I officially became a fan that day and began taking an interest in the team. I remember the Flipper Anderson game (a divisional playoff loss to the Rams) like it was yesterday.
They won the Super Bowl the next year and after Phil Simms and Lawrence Taylor retired, the lean years existed (also known as the Dave Brown/Kent Graham era). As a young kid, I began to lose interest as the Yankees took precedent.
When they made the Super Bowl again in the 2000 season, it was not the same because I did not feel they had a chance.
I was still just a casual watcher (nothing serious), but in 2002 everything changed. The game they lost in San Francisco in the playoffs told me how much I still cared for them.
A few years later, in Seattle, Jay Feely missed three field goals in a game the Giants should have won that was heartbreaking. From that moment on, I was officially “back”.
Like a game of Texas Hold ‘Em, I was “all in”.
Now, here we all were (and me all these years later) on this night hugging and celebrating with bottles of champagne flowing. At that moment, we all began to realize that all of the agita that came with watching these games was now all worth it. It does not get any better than this.
For the foreseeable future, these games will not be the same anymore. Tension and anxiety is what made these games fun. Since that is now gone, what is there left to play for? Will I be upset when they lose? Probably not.
At least I can say I just part of the ride. To be a part of one of the most memorable journeys in the history of my sporting life.
I will never forget it.
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