New York Giants Playoff Tickets

Ask a New York Giants fan about their favorite era and you’ll sense a generational divide. The Giants are a team of two eras when it comes to playoff success: The Bill Parcells “Big Blue Wrecking Crew” era (1983-1990) and the Tom Coughlin-Eli Manning era (2007-11). The Giants of both ages struggled at times but came together when it mattered most. Both eras won two Super Bowl rings. In a high drama environment, the Giants climbed to the top. It’s the New York way.

Quarterback Phil Simms had an up-and-down Giants career after being drafted by the team in 1979. He battled injuries and was eventually benched by Parcells.

But in the 1986-7 Playoffs, the Giants held the San Francisco 49ers to three-points, then shut-out the the Washington Football Team in the NFC Championship. Simms was seeking redemption. In Super Bowl XXI, the Giants (including undersized, supremely-talented RB Joe Morris) faced the Denver Broncos. Their quarterback, John Elway, was considered a prodigy.

Simms was the best version of himself in SB XXI. He racked up three touchdown passes, 268 passing yards, and 25 rushing yards on an efficient 22-for-25 completions. The Giants clawed back in the second half, scoring 26 unanswered points for a 39-20 win. Three seasons later, the Giants overcame myriad struggles and defeated their rival 49ers to face the Bills in Super Bowl XXV. In a tight game between the top offense (Bills) and top defense, the Giants barely held on to win: 20-19. Ring two.

Fast forward. The Giants were, frankly, just-shy-of-great for a long time. Three seasons into the Tom Coughlin (head coach) and Eli Manning (QB) era, New York media questioned. This partnership was, after all, barely over .500. Manning suffered nepotism and his brother’s shadow. Coughlin never went all the way in Jacksonville. The Giants were mediocre.

The New England Patriots were anything but mediocre. The Patriots were undefeated coming into the Super Bowl: 18-0. And their quarterback, Tom Brady, was a bona fide celebrity. The Giants shouldn’t win. Then New York did New York things. Manning, bum-rushed by an army of linemen, made a miracle throw to wide receiver David Tyree, who caught the ball against his helmet. The G-Men would go on to win Super Bowl XLII, 17-14.

In the 2011-12 season, the burgeoning chemistry between Eli Manning and WR Victor Cruz brought the team a 9-7 record, good enough to clinch the playoffs in Week 17.

Super Bowl XLVI: the Patriots are up against the Giants, 17-15 with 57-seconds on the clock. The Patriots were high on hubris and believed they could win it all. But the Giants’ RB Ahmad Bradshaw ran it in for a touchdown, and the Patriots couldn’t come back. Ring four.

Every Giants fan, regardless of age or era, know this. No matter how bad the season, New York can turn it around. It’s happened.