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Speaker 1: Welcome to the Greatest Play Bracket Podcast to the New

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Speaker 1: York Football Giants. It's all brought to you by Hackensack

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Speaker 1: Meridian Health Keep getting Better. I am John Schmelt, joined

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Speaker 1: by the voice of the Giants, Bob Poppa. As the

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Speaker 1: Giants celebrate, Bob, they're one hundredth anniversary, they're giving their

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Speaker 1: fans a chance to vote. What do you think the

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Speaker 1: greatest play is in Giants history. You've broke it up

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Speaker 1: in the sixteen play brackets, four of them. This is

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Speaker 1: the Gray bracket. Go place your vote. We'll get to

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Speaker 1: the final four. We'll have another round of voting and

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Speaker 1: fans will decide who the greatest, What the greatest play

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Speaker 1: is in New York Football Giants history? And Bob, this

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Speaker 1: is our great Bracket and we're gonna start with a

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Speaker 1: play now.

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Speaker 2: Well, hold on, hold on a second, Hold on second.

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Speaker 2: This is an interesting bracket here because you have an

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Speaker 2: offensive play number one, and then number two, you have

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Speaker 2: a defensive play. Number three, you have another big offensive play.

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Speaker 2: So we've got a little twist in some of these.

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Speaker 2: I mean, there's some very cool, important defense defensive plays

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Speaker 2: in Giants history as well on this bracket.

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Speaker 1: Yeah, absolutely, and believe it or not, I'm taking a

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Speaker 1: look right now and of the seeds in this bracket,

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Speaker 1: of the first three, none of them are in playoff games.

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Speaker 1: So I think that's interesting too. No super Bowls in

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Speaker 1: the first three plays. We'll get through all those and more.

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Speaker 1: Should be a fun competition and go through this bracket.

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Speaker 1: So Victor Cruz, big time player for the Football Giants.

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Speaker 1: Great story comes out of nowhere. Twenty eleven. Giants trying

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Speaker 1: to make the playoffs. They need a win against the

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Speaker 1: hated Jets Christmas Eve game, correct, and they're backed up

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Speaker 1: at their one yard line. They hit Victor Cruz and

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Speaker 1: he takes care of the rest.

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Speaker 2: Yeah. I mean, listen, the Jets were controlling the game

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Speaker 2: at this point. I mean, the Giants were going backwards offensively,

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Speaker 2: they weren't really doing anything offensively, and the Jets had

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Speaker 2: a little bit of the upper hand as far as

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Speaker 2: their ability to move the ball against the Giants, and

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Speaker 2: the Giants needed something. I mean, and as Eli Manning

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Speaker 2: has said interviews, I'm we're just trying to throw a

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Speaker 2: little hitch and just give ourselves some breathing room. And

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Speaker 2: then the next thing you know, Cruz gets out of

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Speaker 2: a tackle, jumps over another guy, goes down the sideline,

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Speaker 2: and it's kind of ironic because you know, remember, Victor

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Speaker 2: had his big breakout game in the preseason of twenty ten,

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Speaker 2: the first game ever in MetLife Stadium against the Jets.

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Speaker 2: The Jets had no idea who this kid was. He

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Speaker 2: was beating their number one corners and you know it

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Speaker 2: was it was pretty cool. I mean, he wasn't even

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Speaker 2: wearing number eighty that rookie season, but this gave the

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Speaker 2: Giants a spark. Cruse had this magical run that season.

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Speaker 2: He would go on to have a big catch and

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Speaker 2: run for a touchdown in the postseason against the Dallas Cowboys.

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Speaker 2: But this game has a lot of significance. First of all,

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Speaker 2: it's ninety nine yards. It's the longest one in Giants history.

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Speaker 2: And when you think about the significance of it, this

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Speaker 2: game was pretty much a playoff game for both the

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Speaker 2: Giants and the Jets because their margin of error was

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Speaker 2: so slow both teams coming into the game, and with

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Speaker 2: it being a Jets home game. This Cruise thing almost

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Speaker 2: relieve the Giants of a lot of pressure that they

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Speaker 2: were feeling because now they had control the Jets were

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Speaker 2: reeling a little bit, and from that moment on, the

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Speaker 2: Giants started to take this game over.

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Speaker 1: And just to reflect a little bit on Victor Cruz,

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Speaker 1: I think this was a good representation of what made

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Speaker 1: him special. Bob really good hands, good rout runner shore,

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Speaker 1: but he was his ability to run after the catch,

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Speaker 1: to make plays on short passes that really set him

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Speaker 1: apart as a player.

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Speaker 2: Yeah, I mean, and you know, again, he was an

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Speaker 2: undrafted free agent, so he didn't have a forty time

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Speaker 2: that would get you to a combine. He didn't have

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Speaker 2: some of the metrics to get you drafted. But some

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Speaker 2: guys just play fast, you know. And Victor Cruz was

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Speaker 2: fast when he needed to be fast, and he was

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Speaker 2: fast going down that right sideline and avoiding that last

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Speaker 2: tackler right in front of the Gets bench. And when

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Speaker 2: you look at the replay of the play, you could

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Speaker 2: just see like the long faces and the celebration that

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Speaker 2: just began. It's it is one of the It's a

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Speaker 2: number one seed for a good.

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Speaker 1: Reason, absolutely, but it's going up against a touchdown. In

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Speaker 1: the nineteen thirty eight title game, Ed Danowski a twenty

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Speaker 1: three yard third quarter touchdown pass to Hank Sore accounts

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Speaker 1: for the final points in the giants twenty three seventeen

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Speaker 1: victory against Green Bay in nineteen thirty eight.

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Speaker 3: You're, Bob, I know you were. You were in the

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Speaker 3: building for this long right now.

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Speaker 2: I was not there for that. Uh Ed Danowski. He

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Speaker 2: was a fantastic quarterback when you take a look at

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Speaker 2: you know, his numbers and put them in comparison to

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Speaker 2: what was going on in that ear of quarterback play.

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Speaker 2: But uh, you know, this is very significant. These are

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Speaker 2: the early years of the National Football League and the

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Speaker 2: Giants who are able to add one of their eight

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Speaker 2: titles taken on the Green Bay Packers, who were perennial

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Speaker 2: powers as well in the NFL, and uh Danowski was

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Speaker 2: an accomplished player at quarterback. I don't think people realize

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Speaker 2: how good he was when you take them into context

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Speaker 2: of that era.

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Speaker 1: All right, let's go to the next matchup. The eight

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Speaker 1: to nine. These are always fun. Why a Tittle touchdown

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Speaker 1: to Frank Gifford in a seven touchdown game October twenty eighth,

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Speaker 1: nineteen sixty two sets the record for seven passing touchdowns

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Speaker 1: in a game for Ya Tittle?

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Speaker 2: Yeah, I mean why Tittle was he was one of

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Speaker 2: the best passers in the National Football League at that time.

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Speaker 2: Obviously he had done amazing things with the forty nine ers.

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Speaker 2: Comes over to the Giants and people think about, you know,

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Speaker 2: the Giants running attack, and you think about in the

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Speaker 2: Super Bowl era how a lot of their offense was

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Speaker 2: built on the run game. Well, in this era, with

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Speaker 2: Charlie Connolly first and then Ya Tittle second, the Giants

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Speaker 2: were a very open offense as far as the ability

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Speaker 2: to throw and pass the football. And you know, for

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Speaker 2: Ya Tittle to throw seven in one game and set

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Speaker 2: an NFL record, that's pretty cool stuff. And one Hall

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Speaker 2: of Famer to another Hall of Famer in Frank Effort.

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Speaker 1: And you talk about comparing era sometimes and you're like, well,

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Speaker 1: you can't compare the passing games back then. Now you

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Speaker 1: look at some of Ya Tittle stats back then, it's

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Speaker 1: more comparable than you think.

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Speaker 2: Well, why Tittle's touchdowns in a season record that he

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Speaker 2: set while with the New York Giants stood until nineteen

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Speaker 2: eighty four when Dan Marino broke it. I mean, so

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Speaker 2: his record stood for twenty years for the most touchdown

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Speaker 2: passes in a season, and that's counting the seventies when

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Speaker 2: in the late seventies the rules change where you were

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Speaker 2: no longer allowed to beat up a wide receiver from

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Speaker 2: the snap of the ball, and they got five yards,

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Speaker 2: you know, the five yard chuck rule. So when you

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Speaker 2: think about what Tittle was able to do, obviously it's

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Speaker 2: Hall of Fame material.

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Speaker 1: And going in the number nine seed here, and Bob,

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Speaker 1: I'll editorialize that's fine. I think this play should be

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Speaker 1: higher on this list. Eric Howard forces a Roger Craig

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Speaker 1: fumble that Lawrence Taylor recovers to set up the deciding

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Speaker 1: field goal in the nineteen ninety NFC Championship game. The

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Speaker 1: Niners are running the clock out here. Without this fumble,

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Speaker 1: Giants aren't going to the Super Bowl.

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Speaker 2: Yeah, And I think it sometimes gets lost a little bit,

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Speaker 2: you know. You think about Leonard Marshall knocking Montana out

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Speaker 2: of the game. Steve Young comes in the game, but

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Speaker 2: San Francisco still has control of this game, and they

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Speaker 2: have the ball, and the Giants need a play, they

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Speaker 2: need a play, And everybody remembers Lawrence Taylor recovering the ball,

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Speaker 2: but it was Eric Howard who set up the fumble,

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Speaker 2: who knocked the ball out which led to the Giants

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Speaker 2: kicking the field goal, because the Giants only kicked field

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Speaker 2: goals that day, but they needed to find a way

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Speaker 2: to get the ball back, and Roger Craig was a

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Speaker 2: guy that didn't fumble a lot. San Francisco was obviously

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Speaker 2: a very sound team, and they were on their way

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Speaker 2: to going to a third straight Super Bowl. And Eric Howard,

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Speaker 2: like you know, all the Giants championship teams, there are

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Speaker 2: always guys that step up, not just the big name guys,

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Speaker 2: but there's been so many players that have come up

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Speaker 2: with big plays in big moments, which is why they

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Speaker 2: became championship teams.

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Speaker 1: I love the radio call at the end of this

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Speaker 1: game where Dick Lynch just sounds so happy.

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Speaker 3: It's over. It's over for the three.

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Speaker 2: Yeah, they'll be No. Three.

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Speaker 3: P It was fantastic. Love it all.

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Speaker 1: Right, let's go to the five seed. Antonio Pierce with

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Speaker 1: a great play. This is going back to that Super

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Speaker 1: Bowl forty two, two thousand and seven NFC title game

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Speaker 1: against the Packers. The Packers scheme up a screen pass.

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Speaker 1: Those Packer teams are great at scheming up screens, and

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Speaker 1: Brandon Jackson's out there, He's got two blockers ahead of him,

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Speaker 1: and Bob, we were in the booth.

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Speaker 3: There's just a whole lot of green ahead of him.

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Speaker 1: Then here comes Antonio Pierce, splits the two blockers, tackles him,

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Speaker 1: help stop the Packers, and the Giants win the game.

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Speaker 2: Uh, this is a this is a big statement here,

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Speaker 2: but I think that if Antonio Pierce doesn't make this play,

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Speaker 2: because the Packers that had momentum at this point in

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Speaker 2: the game, and they were kind of churning through the

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Speaker 2: Giants and they were kind of figuring out play calls

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Speaker 2: that we're gonna work against the Giants. If Antonio Pierce

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Speaker 2: doesn't make this play, I don't know if the Giants

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Speaker 2: win this game. I don't know if they win this game.

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Speaker 3: I don't think that's a hot take, Bob, I really don't.

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Speaker 2: Well, it's my opinion. I think this changed momentum in

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Speaker 2: the game. It forced the field goal when it looked

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Speaker 2: like the Packers were getting an easy touch, and they

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Speaker 2: dialed up the perfect play for what the Giants were in.

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Speaker 2: But it was Antonio Pierce's extremely high football IQ that

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Speaker 2: enabled him to diagnose and read and sense what Green

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Speaker 2: Bay was trying to do to the Giants, and they

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Speaker 2: got ten of them, but they didn't get one of them.

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Speaker 2: And we talk about Michael Strahan, and obviously you know

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Speaker 2: the heart and soul of the Giants and the veteran

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Speaker 2: leader and you know the captain and all that other stuff.

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Speaker 2: But Antonio Pierce really was kind of the soul. He

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Speaker 2: was the coach on the field, and for him to

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Speaker 2: identify this in a split second and then be able

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Speaker 2: to split those defenders and get this stop, in my opinion,

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Speaker 2: changed the whole game absolutely.

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Speaker 3: And that was Antonio Pears a superpower, right. He was

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Speaker 3: a guy.

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Speaker 1: Seventh round pick, correct if I remember, was he undrafted?

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Speaker 1: Was undrafted undrafted, He didn't have the measurables. He didn't

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Speaker 1: run a great forty. He wasn't the biggest guy in

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Speaker 1: the world, but he could do stuff like this is

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Speaker 1: what made him a difference making player.

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Speaker 2: Yeah, I remember he told me he kept the list

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Speaker 2: of all the linebacker There was thirty something linebackers that

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Speaker 2: were drafted in his class. And you know, because ap

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Speaker 2: played on a great defense at Arizona, and he would

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Speaker 2: keep him in his locker. I used to see it

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Speaker 2: all the time. He would keep the list in his locker,

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Speaker 2: and every year as another one of those linebackers washed

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Speaker 2: out of the league, he would cross their name off

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Speaker 2: the list. And you know, he had an incredible football

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Speaker 2: IQ and it was on full display right here because

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Speaker 2: this was one of the greatest plays, in my opinion,

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Speaker 2: in Giant's history.

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Speaker 1: One reason none of us are surprised. He turned out

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Speaker 1: to be pretty darn good coach as well. Yeah, in

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Speaker 1: his football intellect taking on number twelve Andy Robistelli a

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Speaker 1: sack in the fifty sixth title game against the Chicago Bears.

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Speaker 1: And this is just a way to high Andy Robistelli here, Bob,

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Speaker 1: who was one of the greatest Giants in history.

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Speaker 2: Yeah, number eighty one, a true gentleman. Obviously had a

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Speaker 2: chance to meet with him in his later years. But

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Speaker 2: he was unbelievable. And you know, he provided the pass

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Speaker 2: rush in a lot of ways for the Giants. And

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Speaker 2: you know, we talk about Sam Huff and what he

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Speaker 2: did in the middle, and Frank Gifford and all those

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Speaker 2: great players are on that team. But Andy Robistelli got

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Speaker 2: after the quarterback like nobody's business and fitting that in

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Speaker 2: the first year in Yankee Stadium in an NFL championship

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Speaker 2: game against the Bears in which the Giants went on

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Speaker 2: winning this football game pretty comfortably. Andy Robistelli got a

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Speaker 2: sack in the game, even though sacks were unofficial stats

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Speaker 2: at that point, no question about it. I remember Lawrence

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Speaker 2: Taylor lost a whole bunch of sacks from his rookie

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Speaker 2: season because they didn't count. But yeah, Andy Robistelli, great

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Speaker 2: player and obviously an impact player, which is why he's

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Speaker 2: a Hall of Famer.

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Speaker 1: Back to the sixth seed, Bob Lawrence tynes Is two

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Speaker 1: thousand and seven game in Green Bay, the overtime field

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Speaker 1: goal in overtime after that Corey Webster interception to give

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Speaker 1: the Giants to win and send them to the super Bowl.

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Speaker 1: And it's funny, that's my favorite Giant game I've ever

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Speaker 1: been at. And I think we might have more plays

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Speaker 1: from that title game in our overall bracket than any

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Speaker 1: other game. There's so many moments in that game that's special.

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Speaker 1: And when I remember about that game, Chris Russo, who

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Speaker 1: would doing shows FN at the time, he was in

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Speaker 1: the booth and Lawrence Times had missed two field goals previously.

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Speaker 3: And not close really, like these are not close misses.

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Speaker 3: He sets up the field goal. Russo passed out.

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Speaker 1: The show is Johnny no chance and Lawrence Tides goes

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Speaker 1: out there, wax it right through the middle, runs right

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Speaker 1: into the tunnel, gets out of there, and the Giants

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Speaker 1: go to the Super Bowl.

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Speaker 2: Yeah, and when he had missed the one earlier, I mean,

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Speaker 2: TV showed Kaughlin, whose face was frozen red, looked like

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Speaker 2: he was kind of yelling at him, but he was

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Speaker 2: actually more like encouraging him, like just stay in it,

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Speaker 2: stay in and stay in it. And uh hey, I

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Speaker 2: was I think cough was shocked that Tyines went out there.

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Speaker 2: Tynes just went out there. They just ran out there.

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Speaker 2: The field goal unit, the.

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Speaker 3: COF went to call for it, the Ties was already

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Speaker 3: going on the field.

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Speaker 2: And that was the longest kick to that end of

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Speaker 2: the stadium in Lambeau Field in a field goal that

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Speaker 2: I ever been made, forty seven yards. I think it's

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Speaker 2: since been eclipsed. But when you think about the conditions

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Speaker 2: and what he was actually kicking, this frozen rock that

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Speaker 2: they called the football at the time. But with the temperatures,

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Speaker 2: you know, in the negative twenty one degrees, with the

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Speaker 2: wind chill factor, can't get more clutch than this. I

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Speaker 2: mean it's it's what dreams are made of. It's what

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Speaker 2: every kicker dreams of. It's what every kid dreams of

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Speaker 2: when you're in the backyard. Oh throws a touchdown and

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Speaker 2: win the Super Bowl at bad home run and win.

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Speaker 3: The World Series.

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Speaker 2: Well, for a kicker, this is as good as it

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Speaker 2: gets outside of kicking the winning field goal in the

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Speaker 2: Super Bowl. But considering the circumstances and the hardship that

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Speaker 2: he had went through. The other thing about it was,

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Speaker 2: I was starting to get worried because you had the

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Speaker 2: Bradshaw touchdown run that was called back. You had there

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Speaker 2: were a couple other plays in this game because the

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Speaker 2: Giants had then taken control of the game, but they

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Speaker 2: hadn't put the game away. And you keep saying yourself, Man,

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Speaker 2: if they don't keep if this keeps going, at some point,

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Speaker 2: you're gonna give Farv one too many chances and he's.

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Speaker 1: Just gonna chuck it up. They're gonna score a touchdown.

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Speaker 1: I mean, that's what Brett Farve does.

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Speaker 2: Yeah, someone's gonna slip and Donald Driver is gonna go

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Speaker 2: for a touch which is kind of how they scored

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Speaker 2: their first touchdown of the game. So for this thing,

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Speaker 2: to go through pretty significant and kudos to Lawrence Tynes

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Speaker 2: for doing it. And he didn't do it once, he

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Speaker 2: did it twice because he did it in an NFC

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Speaker 2: Championship game a couple of years later.

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Speaker 1: Yeah, he was a guy that didn't you know, he

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Speaker 1: did not let that stuff get in his head. He

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Speaker 1: was very mentally tough. The two misses didn't bother him.

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Speaker 1: And I still remember talking to Jeff Fiegels. He said

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Speaker 1: after that game, because the Giants pumped it enough in

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Speaker 1: that game, he said his foot was swollen for days.

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Speaker 1: That's how hard the football was when it comes to

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Speaker 1: the conditions. And to kick it in that situation with

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Speaker 1: that pressure after two misses with the ball being frozen,

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Speaker 1: I believe this was pre cable. I don't think cables

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Speaker 1: were a thing at this point either. So it was

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Speaker 1: just really tough circumstances and Lawren's time's at an unbelievable job.

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Speaker 3: Good luck Justin Tuck.

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Speaker 1: Super Bowl forty two, Justin Tuck two sacks against Tom

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Speaker 1: Brady and that Super Bowl only play in ANFL history.

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Speaker 1: With multiple sacks and multiple Super Bowls, Bob Justin Tuck

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Speaker 1: could have easily been the MVP of that Super Bowl.

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Speaker 2: Yeah, I mean, it's not necessarily a play. It's Justin

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Speaker 2: Tuck in Super Bowl's forty two and forty six, between

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Speaker 2: the four combined sacks two and forty two and then

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Speaker 2: two more in forty six, and the amount of pressure

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Speaker 2: in the hits that he got on Brady. Obviously, Justin

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Speaker 2: was a huge factor in this. They had that NASCAR

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Speaker 2: package that they would use, and Tuck would start working

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Speaker 2: from the inside with Strahan and Oc on the outside,

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Speaker 2: and you know, every time he got Braidy to the ground,

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Speaker 2: you know, it's one less down for him to do damage.

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Speaker 2: Because remember that season, the Patriots set an NFL record

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Speaker 2: for points and yards and touchdowns and touchdown passes everything,

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Speaker 2: So the Giants were able to get hits on him,

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Speaker 2: and obviously in Super Bowl forty two, Justin Tuck was

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Speaker 2: a huge factor.

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Speaker 1: All right, Let's go to the next match of Bob

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Speaker 1: from one game winning kick to another. Matt Barr kicking

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Speaker 1: the game winner against the forty nine Ers in the

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Speaker 1: nineteen ninety championship game right after the aforementioned force fumble

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Speaker 1: in recovery with Eric Howard and Lawrence Town.

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Speaker 2: Yeah, I mean, all the scores for the Giants in that

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Speaker 2: game were field goals by Matt Barr. You kicked five

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Speaker 2: of them.

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Speaker 1: Mister reliable man. You always felt like when we went

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Speaker 1: out there to kick it, it was going in.

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Speaker 2: I think it is one of the few kickers Parcels

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Speaker 2: actually liked us, Matt Barr, and Matt Barr integrated very

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Speaker 2: well with his teammates, which was interesting too. Very unique man,

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Speaker 2: clutch player, veteran guy, not.

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Speaker 3: The biggest leg, but they didn't even that the biggest no.

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Speaker 2: And they didn't need a big leg for this kick.

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Speaker 2: But under the circumstances. Again, you know you're in San

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Speaker 2: Francisco now. I also got to put into context the

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Speaker 2: old Candlestick Park was a baseball stadium that was built,

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Speaker 2: and you know, the New York Baseball Giants got a

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Speaker 2: little bit buffaloed when they moved out west, and they

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Speaker 2: went and they showed the owners of the Baseball Giants

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Speaker 2: where this new stadium would be. It's gonna beautiful Candlestick Point. Well,

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Speaker 2: they took him out there. They took him out there

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Speaker 2: to see the spot of the new stadium sometime around

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Speaker 2: lunchtime when it's warm and nice, not knowing that what

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Speaker 2: it's like in the evening and later in the day,

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Speaker 2: and the fact that the stadium itself, the field level,

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Speaker 2: I think was kind of below sea level, so the

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Speaker 2: water would come up from underneath.

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Speaker 3: It was a mud bowl.

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Speaker 2: It was never a nice track, it was. I mean

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Speaker 2: even the eleven NFC Championship game where it had been

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Speaker 2: raining a lot, the surface was a mess. But you know,

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Speaker 2: for bar to do this under those circumstances, trying to

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Speaker 2: knock the Niners out from being a three peat or

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Speaker 2: going for a three peat is pretty significant.

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Speaker 1: No question about. And it's going up against Stephen Baker.

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Speaker 1: He's the touchdown maker for a reason. Bob fourteen touchdown

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Speaker 1: catch with twenty five seconds left in the half it

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Speaker 1: gave the Giants put it within two points in Super

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Speaker 1: Bowl twenty five against the Bills.

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Speaker 2: Yeah, and you know, you see all the guys with

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Speaker 2: the fancy gloves and stuff like that, and Stephen Baker

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Speaker 2: looks like Mickey Mouse, you know, with these big gloves.

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Speaker 2: They were scuba gloves. There were gloves that scuba divers were,

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Speaker 2: so they weren't even regular football receivers gloves or anything.

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Speaker 2: And this is an incredible catch in that corner of

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Speaker 2: the end zone getting both feed in. And it's very

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Speaker 2: significant because the Giants are their game plan is to

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Speaker 2: use the clock, use the clock, use the clock, limit

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Speaker 2: the offensive possessions for the Bills. But you got to

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Speaker 2: score some touchdowns here or there. And this one comes

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Speaker 2: at the end of the half. Perfect throw by Hastetler,

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Speaker 2: great route and catch by Stephen Baker, the touchdown maker.

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Speaker 2: And then remember then you have the halftime ceremony, the concert,

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Speaker 2: and then the Giants went on that long drive to

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Speaker 2: start the third quarter. So the Buffalo Bills offensively hadn't

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Speaker 2: been on the field in like over an hour by

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Speaker 2: the time they fight got their next possession. But the

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Speaker 2: fact that they scored a touchdown and didn't settle for

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Speaker 2: a field goal was big. And Baker Baker made big plays,

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Speaker 2: that's why they call him the touchdown Maker. Didn't have

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Speaker 2: a zillion catches in his career, but came up with

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Speaker 2: a lot of colletch plays for the Giants.

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Speaker 1: All right, let's go to the three seed here Bob

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Speaker 1: Tiki Barber's ninety five yard NFC East clincher. This is

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Speaker 1: New Year's Eve, two thousand and five. I just started

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Speaker 1: working the games back in the studio here at WFN

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Speaker 1: for this game. I remember it well, runs for ninety

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Speaker 1: five yards at a monster game, said the New York

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Speaker 1: Giants record for the longest run. And this was the

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Speaker 1: dude for Wellington Mara and Bob Tisch game.

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Speaker 3: Yeah.

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Speaker 2: I mean, the Giants had lost both of their iconic

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Speaker 2: owners that fall, so it was a very difficult year

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Speaker 2: for the team, a very emotional emotional for a lot

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Speaker 2: of the players, especially the veteran players who had been

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Speaker 2: around and had gotten to know mister Mara and mister

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Speaker 2: Tish and become friendly with them. And I'll never forget

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Speaker 2: Kaughlin addressing the team afterwards about this, You guys are

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Speaker 2: the team of record, meaning in the year in which

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Speaker 2: both owners passed away and Plaxico had a big game

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Speaker 2: in this game, Tiki was Can you say Tiki was

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Speaker 2: blossoming in his second to last year, But if you

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Speaker 2: take a look at Tiki's last five years as a

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Speaker 2: running back in the National Football League, arguably the best

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Speaker 2: five years of the last five years of any running

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Speaker 2: back in the history of the NFL.

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Speaker 3: And I will stand for Tiki right now. There's an

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Speaker 3: argument that he should be in the Hall of Fame.

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Speaker 2: He should be in the whole well, he should, he

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Speaker 2: should be in the Hall of Fame. It's you look

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Speaker 2: at his numbers, and you look at people that played

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Speaker 2: similar position his position and from that era, and they're

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Speaker 2: as good as anybody's. And again, the last five years

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Speaker 2: of Tiki Barber's career are as good as any five

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Speaker 2: years of anybody else else over that stretch. So this

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Speaker 2: kind of was an exclamation point on just a dominant

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Speaker 2: season for Tiki Barber.

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Speaker 3: Take it on the fourteen seed.

436
00:21:11,640 --> 00:21:15,560
Speaker 1: Plexico Burris is Philly ot winner thirty one yard touchdown

437
00:21:15,600 --> 00:21:18,960
Speaker 1: reception with almost twelve minutes the laps in overtime. He

438
00:21:19,000 --> 00:21:21,400
Speaker 1: gave the Giants a thirty to twenty four win in

439
00:21:21,440 --> 00:21:23,680
Speaker 1: Philly in a game they trailed in the third quarter

440
00:21:23,680 --> 00:21:26,639
Speaker 1: twenty four to seven. This was September seventeenth, two thousand

441
00:21:26,680 --> 00:21:30,560
Speaker 1: and six. This was kind of a Eli trusting Plax play,

442
00:21:30,720 --> 00:21:33,040
Speaker 1: kind of just flung it up there, made the play,

443
00:21:33,080 --> 00:21:36,359
Speaker 1: and Bob Plexico Burris owned the Eagles.

444
00:21:36,680 --> 00:21:38,479
Speaker 2: Yeah, I mean the Giants were owning the Eagles at

445
00:21:38,480 --> 00:21:41,520
Speaker 2: this point. I'll never forget again. You talk about Eli

446
00:21:41,600 --> 00:21:45,240
Speaker 2: Manning and his toughness. I think Eli was sacked seven

447
00:21:45,280 --> 00:21:47,560
Speaker 2: times in the first half. I mean, he was getting

448
00:21:48,480 --> 00:21:51,800
Speaker 2: his butt kicked and the Giants were trailing in the

449
00:21:51,840 --> 00:21:55,520
Speaker 2: third quarter. And you know, a subplot to all this

450
00:21:55,680 --> 00:21:58,920
Speaker 2: is the performance of Amani Tumor in this game. Amani

451
00:21:58,960 --> 00:22:01,480
Speaker 2: Tumor had one of the most epic games for a

452
00:22:01,520 --> 00:22:06,160
Speaker 2: Giants wide receiver in Giants' history, and he had caught

453
00:22:06,200 --> 00:22:09,439
Speaker 2: the touchdown pass to get the game into overtime. And

454
00:22:09,480 --> 00:22:12,080
Speaker 2: you're one hundred percent. I could still see myself sitting

455
00:22:12,119 --> 00:22:15,439
Speaker 2: in the radio booth at Lincoln Financial Field and you

456
00:22:15,480 --> 00:22:17,760
Speaker 2: see this whole scenario and you just said to yourself,

457
00:22:18,800 --> 00:22:21,800
Speaker 2: Plax is winning this route, like they can't stop Plax

458
00:22:22,480 --> 00:22:25,960
Speaker 2: and the thirty one yard touchdown pass. I think it

459
00:22:26,040 --> 00:22:29,119
Speaker 2: was a lot of redemption for Eli, who had, you know,

460
00:22:29,280 --> 00:22:31,359
Speaker 2: just taken this big beating, but he hung in there

461
00:22:31,600 --> 00:22:33,760
Speaker 2: and it kind of showed the toughness and the grittiness

462
00:22:33,840 --> 00:22:38,439
Speaker 2: of this football team as they were building toward the

463
00:22:38,480 --> 00:22:41,399
Speaker 2: following season and that Super Bowl run. But this was

464
00:22:41,480 --> 00:22:44,800
Speaker 2: more again of a maturation of the New York Giants,

465
00:22:45,040 --> 00:22:48,639
Speaker 2: and to go into Philadelphia and beat them and the

466
00:22:48,680 --> 00:22:50,800
Speaker 2: way they came back to do it was pretty cool.

467
00:22:50,840 --> 00:22:55,560
Speaker 2: And again Plexico Burres against the Eagles was like taking

468
00:22:55,600 --> 00:22:58,600
Speaker 2: candy from a baby. He just dominated them from.

469
00:22:58,520 --> 00:23:01,240
Speaker 3: Winning in Philly winning in Dallas.

470
00:23:01,960 --> 00:23:04,320
Speaker 1: In one of the more dominating games by an individual

471
00:23:04,359 --> 00:23:07,480
Speaker 1: defensive player that I've seen, Jason Pierre Paul wills the

472
00:23:07,480 --> 00:23:11,280
Speaker 1: Giants to victory December eleven, twenty eleven, blocks Dan Bally's

473
00:23:11,320 --> 00:23:13,560
Speaker 1: forty seven yard field goal ten with one second left

474
00:23:13,760 --> 00:23:16,080
Speaker 1: to preserve a thirty seven to thirty four victory in

475
00:23:16,160 --> 00:23:18,960
Speaker 1: Dallas that ends a four game losing streak. Giants don't

476
00:23:18,960 --> 00:23:21,160
Speaker 1: win this game, they probably don't make the playoffs that year, Bob.

477
00:23:21,200 --> 00:23:22,680
Speaker 1: This is one of those kind of must win type

478
00:23:22,680 --> 00:23:25,720
Speaker 1: of playoff type games in twenty eleven. And JPP was

479
00:23:25,760 --> 00:23:28,119
Speaker 1: all over the place in that game. And Dan Baily

480
00:23:28,200 --> 00:23:30,160
Speaker 1: at this point was a guy that did not miss

481
00:23:30,200 --> 00:23:32,720
Speaker 1: field goals. He was automatic. So you had to block

482
00:23:32,760 --> 00:23:34,760
Speaker 1: it if you wanted to prevent that from going through

483
00:23:34,800 --> 00:23:35,280
Speaker 1: the uprights.

484
00:23:35,320 --> 00:23:36,199
Speaker 3: And JPP did it.

485
00:23:37,160 --> 00:23:39,680
Speaker 2: Yeah, I mean he was all He was all over

486
00:23:39,680 --> 00:23:42,560
Speaker 2: the place in this football game. You know, sacks, hits

487
00:23:42,600 --> 00:23:46,359
Speaker 2: on the quarterback against the run. I mean, he was dominant.

488
00:23:46,840 --> 00:23:49,320
Speaker 2: And you're one hundred percent right if the Giants lose

489
00:23:49,400 --> 00:23:54,040
Speaker 2: this game, They're not mathematically eliminated, but for all intents

490
00:23:54,080 --> 00:23:56,159
Speaker 2: and purposes, they're out because they had to go on

491
00:23:56,200 --> 00:23:58,960
Speaker 2: this run down the stretch and they had to beat

492
00:23:58,960 --> 00:24:04,040
Speaker 2: the Cowboys, knowing that they had the Cowboys one more

493
00:24:04,119 --> 00:24:07,920
Speaker 2: time at MetLife Stadium at the end of the season,

494
00:24:08,520 --> 00:24:11,400
Speaker 2: but in order for that game to be significant, they

495
00:24:11,400 --> 00:24:13,560
Speaker 2: had to win this game first. A split doesn't do

496
00:24:13,600 --> 00:24:16,640
Speaker 2: the Giants any good against Dallas at this point. And

497
00:24:17,119 --> 00:24:18,639
Speaker 2: you know, the other thing about it was, the Giants

498
00:24:18,640 --> 00:24:23,119
Speaker 2: are trailing in this game and Eli Manning was unbelievable

499
00:24:24,960 --> 00:24:28,320
Speaker 2: and the Giants offense was unbelievable scoring as many points

500
00:24:28,359 --> 00:24:30,159
Speaker 2: as they did in a short period of time. But

501
00:24:30,240 --> 00:24:31,919
Speaker 2: in the end, the Cowboys had the ball and a

502
00:24:32,000 --> 00:24:34,919
Speaker 2: chance to go win the game. And Jpp, you know,

503
00:24:34,960 --> 00:24:37,080
Speaker 2: as Carl Blanks said, you're down with JPP. He was

504
00:24:37,119 --> 00:24:40,080
Speaker 2: a one man wrecking crew at that point in time.

505
00:24:40,160 --> 00:24:43,800
Speaker 2: He was as good as they came. He was one

506
00:24:43,840 --> 00:24:45,879
Speaker 2: of the best players in the National Football League, not

507
00:24:45,920 --> 00:24:48,840
Speaker 2: only at his position, remember him running down on kicks

508
00:24:49,320 --> 00:24:54,040
Speaker 2: in twenty ten and kickoff coverage a superior athlete, and

509
00:24:54,640 --> 00:24:57,080
Speaker 2: this one literally saved the Giant season.

510
00:24:56,920 --> 00:24:57,399
Speaker 3: No question.

511
00:24:57,440 --> 00:24:59,320
Speaker 1: I'll just you mentioned it too. I'll just bring it up.

512
00:25:00,040 --> 00:25:02,919
Speaker 1: Eli Manning's fourth quarter performances in twenty eleven. You go

513
00:25:02,960 --> 00:25:04,960
Speaker 1: back and look at the stats. They're almost as good

514
00:25:04,960 --> 00:25:07,040
Speaker 1: as some quarterbacks for the whole year. Just what he

515
00:25:07,080 --> 00:25:08,960
Speaker 1: did in the fourth quarter in that season.

516
00:25:08,840 --> 00:25:11,159
Speaker 2: Right, and what all would have been forgotten if JPP

517
00:25:11,359 --> 00:25:13,159
Speaker 2: doesn't block the ballyfield.

518
00:25:12,600 --> 00:25:16,520
Speaker 1: Goal hundred percent taking on Keem Knicks's wild card touchdown

519
00:25:16,640 --> 00:25:19,200
Speaker 1: seventy two yards to Keen Knicks. This is a little

520
00:25:19,200 --> 00:25:21,959
Speaker 1: crossing pattern over the middle. Nicks catches it does the

521
00:25:22,000 --> 00:25:26,320
Speaker 1: rest sends the Giants into the Visional Playoffs, longest postseason

522
00:25:26,359 --> 00:25:30,200
Speaker 1: play in Giants history. Tied that record and longest play

523
00:25:30,240 --> 00:25:31,400
Speaker 1: in a postseason victory.

524
00:25:31,880 --> 00:25:33,560
Speaker 2: And I still think the Falcons are going for an

525
00:25:33,600 --> 00:25:37,840
Speaker 2: un fourth downs. But they finished with two points in

526
00:25:37,840 --> 00:25:38,840
Speaker 2: that game that night.

527
00:25:39,320 --> 00:25:41,000
Speaker 3: And they had a really good offense that year too.

528
00:25:41,240 --> 00:25:44,040
Speaker 2: Bizarre number. Yeah, but the Giants offense was better, especially

529
00:25:44,040 --> 00:25:46,560
Speaker 2: when it mattered. And again, you know, I think what

530
00:25:46,720 --> 00:25:49,720
Speaker 2: people forget about the eleven Giants because they I think

531
00:25:49,760 --> 00:25:53,719
Speaker 2: they try to put the seven and eleven Giants together

532
00:25:53,880 --> 00:25:57,200
Speaker 2: different teams. But during the course of the seven sea

533
00:25:57,320 --> 00:26:00,399
Speaker 2: of the eleven season, OCI was hurt. Tuck was hurt.

534
00:26:01,160 --> 00:26:05,280
Speaker 2: The Giants run game wasn't really that good, but the

535
00:26:05,440 --> 00:26:09,680
Speaker 2: run game came alive with that jet game when a

536
00:26:09,760 --> 00:26:13,040
Speaker 2: Mott Bradshaw ran over the safety after Victor Cruz had

537
00:26:13,080 --> 00:26:15,800
Speaker 2: the ninety nine yard touchdown, and the defense got better.

538
00:26:16,359 --> 00:26:19,440
Speaker 2: This was a season in which the Giants were carried

539
00:26:20,440 --> 00:26:24,200
Speaker 2: by the right arm of Eli Manning and these unbelievable

540
00:26:24,200 --> 00:26:28,200
Speaker 2: weapons at receiver, I mean, the Keeam Knicks was dominant

541
00:26:28,240 --> 00:26:31,719
Speaker 2: in this game. He had a postseason to remember, one

542
00:26:31,760 --> 00:26:35,160
Speaker 2: of the most prolific postseasons for a receiver in NFL history.

543
00:26:35,800 --> 00:26:39,679
Speaker 2: Cruz did his thing, and Manningham as he did in

544
00:26:39,720 --> 00:26:42,080
Speaker 2: the Super Bowl, did his thing. But this was as

545
00:26:42,119 --> 00:26:45,600
Speaker 2: good a receiving corps, a three man receiving corps maybe

546
00:26:45,640 --> 00:26:46,680
Speaker 2: the Giants have ever had.

547
00:26:47,320 --> 00:26:49,919
Speaker 1: Unbelievable and again, the passing game really did carry that

548
00:26:49,960 --> 00:26:51,840
Speaker 1: team for much of the year until the defense caught

549
00:26:51,920 --> 00:26:53,800
Speaker 1: up and of course did a great job against Tom

550
00:26:53,800 --> 00:26:55,560
Speaker 1: Brady and the Patriots in the Super Bowl that year

551
00:26:55,840 --> 00:26:59,040
Speaker 1: and along the way in the playoffs as well. All right, Bob,

552
00:26:59,119 --> 00:27:02,040
Speaker 1: number two seed, final matchup in this bracket, I misspoke

553
00:27:02,040 --> 00:27:03,600
Speaker 1: of the beating. This is a playoff game, but it

554
00:27:03,640 --> 00:27:07,480
Speaker 1: wasn't a championship game or Super Bowl. Jason Sehorn's acrobatic

555
00:27:07,640 --> 00:27:10,560
Speaker 1: thirty two yard interception return touchdown in the two thousand

556
00:27:10,560 --> 00:27:13,040
Speaker 1: and seven Divisional playoff game against the Eagles, But that

557
00:27:13,119 --> 00:27:15,720
Speaker 1: brief description does not do this play justice, as he

558
00:27:16,080 --> 00:27:19,080
Speaker 1: basically plays keeping up you with himself with the football

559
00:27:19,160 --> 00:27:21,360
Speaker 1: to keep it off the ground, catches it and goes

560
00:27:21,359 --> 00:27:22,080
Speaker 1: back with the score.

561
00:27:22,160 --> 00:27:23,520
Speaker 2: Yeah, it's like when you're a kid, you had the

562
00:27:23,520 --> 00:27:25,200
Speaker 2: balloon and you decided to keep it up and it

563
00:27:25,200 --> 00:27:27,159
Speaker 2: would go somewhere and you have to dive somewhere. Well,

564
00:27:27,160 --> 00:27:29,560
Speaker 2: Sehonn did that with a football in an NFL playoff

565
00:27:29,560 --> 00:27:32,120
Speaker 2: game and then made it a touchdown. Now we've talked

566
00:27:32,160 --> 00:27:34,800
Speaker 2: to Jason about this, and he's like, I broke every

567
00:27:34,880 --> 00:27:37,240
Speaker 2: rule under the sun as far as what you're supposed

568
00:27:37,280 --> 00:27:40,439
Speaker 2: to do in that situation, because you know, like I

569
00:27:40,520 --> 00:27:43,320
Speaker 2: miss this and I don't tip this ball, it's going

570
00:27:43,400 --> 00:27:44,960
Speaker 2: for six the other way. So it was a high

571
00:27:45,040 --> 00:27:48,320
Speaker 2: risk play. But you know, Seahorn was such a gifted

572
00:27:48,359 --> 00:27:52,480
Speaker 2: player and unbelievably athletic, and he had had the injuries

573
00:27:52,640 --> 00:27:55,200
Speaker 2: and yeah, when he first came to the Giants, weren't

574
00:27:55,240 --> 00:27:57,600
Speaker 2: even sure if he was a corner or safety. He

575
00:27:57,640 --> 00:28:00,760
Speaker 2: always rose to the occasion in big spots, especially against

576
00:28:00,760 --> 00:28:04,199
Speaker 2: the premier receivers in the NFL. But this was he

577
00:28:04,200 --> 00:28:05,719
Speaker 2: said it when we talked to him about it. He

578
00:28:06,240 --> 00:28:09,520
Speaker 2: when he watches it, he still has to come to

579
00:28:09,640 --> 00:28:12,040
Speaker 2: terms with what he did. It was just all instinct

580
00:28:12,080 --> 00:28:16,600
Speaker 2: reaction and obviously a defining moment in helping the Giants

581
00:28:17,200 --> 00:28:20,640
Speaker 2: get to Super Bowl thirty five. But again beating the Eagles,

582
00:28:20,680 --> 00:28:23,399
Speaker 2: this was a common theme back then, beating the Eagles

583
00:28:23,440 --> 00:28:25,360
Speaker 2: in the playoff game at Giants Stadium.

584
00:28:25,040 --> 00:28:27,160
Speaker 1: And Michael Straan I believe, called Jason sere In the

585
00:28:27,240 --> 00:28:28,520
Speaker 1: best athlete he's ever played with.

586
00:28:28,560 --> 00:28:28,840
Speaker 3: Correct.

587
00:28:28,920 --> 00:28:31,000
Speaker 2: Yeah, it's a lot of guys. A lot of guys

588
00:28:31,040 --> 00:28:33,000
Speaker 2: that have played with Seahorn have said the same thing.

589
00:28:33,800 --> 00:28:36,080
Speaker 2: I remember during camp when they would run the gassers.

590
00:28:36,200 --> 00:28:39,560
Speaker 2: I mean, he would beat everybody by a third of

591
00:28:39,560 --> 00:28:43,320
Speaker 2: the field and you know back and he would not

592
00:28:43,360 --> 00:28:45,920
Speaker 2: even be breathing hard half the time. He might just

593
00:28:46,280 --> 00:28:47,960
Speaker 2: put his hands on his SIPs and take a couple

594
00:28:48,000 --> 00:28:50,000
Speaker 2: of deep breaths. Other guys would be like dying after

595
00:28:50,080 --> 00:28:53,840
Speaker 2: like the fourth set. Seahorn was he was incredible and.

596
00:28:53,880 --> 00:28:57,520
Speaker 1: Taking on the fifteen seat here, Bob. And it might

597
00:28:57,560 --> 00:29:01,000
Speaker 1: be a little hyperbolic to say any Week three game

598
00:29:01,280 --> 00:29:04,320
Speaker 1: was essential to a season, but if anyone was, it

599
00:29:04,360 --> 00:29:07,200
Speaker 1: was this one. This is two thousand and seven. Week three.

600
00:29:07,600 --> 00:29:10,239
Speaker 1: Giants start the year zero to two, giving up. I

601
00:29:10,240 --> 00:29:14,320
Speaker 1: believe that the correct total two million eighty points in

602
00:29:14,360 --> 00:29:17,120
Speaker 1: those first two weeks of the Cowboys and the Packers. Correct,

603
00:29:17,520 --> 00:29:20,040
Speaker 1: and they go take on Washington. It's tight at the end,

604
00:29:20,280 --> 00:29:23,120
Speaker 1: Giants have a lead. Washington's driving the ball down the field,

605
00:29:23,520 --> 00:29:27,840
Speaker 1: first in goal. Giants get four straight stops, finishing with

606
00:29:27,880 --> 00:29:30,160
Speaker 1: one of the unsung heroes of that season, Kawika Mitchell,

607
00:29:30,400 --> 00:29:33,000
Speaker 1: tackling the Dell Betts for a two yard loss on

608
00:29:33,040 --> 00:29:35,560
Speaker 1: a fourth in goal at the one to complete the

609
00:29:35,600 --> 00:29:37,920
Speaker 1: goal line stand to give the Giants to win and

610
00:29:38,000 --> 00:29:39,680
Speaker 1: prevent them from going oh to three, which would have

611
00:29:39,680 --> 00:29:40,960
Speaker 1: been a really tough hold to take out of.

612
00:29:41,400 --> 00:29:42,640
Speaker 2: Yeah, it would have been tough because it would have

613
00:29:42,640 --> 00:29:45,240
Speaker 2: been two division losses because they had lost the opener

614
00:29:45,280 --> 00:29:48,240
Speaker 2: in Dallas. It'd be three conference losses because they lost

615
00:29:48,280 --> 00:29:49,520
Speaker 2: at home against Green Bay.

616
00:29:50,760 --> 00:29:52,520
Speaker 3: Remember they barely made the playoffs, and no. Oh seven,

617
00:29:52,560 --> 00:29:53,400
Speaker 3: it's not like they like.

618
00:29:53,600 --> 00:29:56,560
Speaker 2: Correct did so, Yeah, all this stuff is very significant,

619
00:29:56,720 --> 00:30:01,920
Speaker 2: and I think this was very similar of that seven

620
00:30:02,000 --> 00:30:06,240
Speaker 2: team and everybody's questioning Steve Spagnolo as the defensive coordinator

621
00:30:06,240 --> 00:30:07,920
Speaker 2: and all the points they had given up the first

622
00:30:07,960 --> 00:30:11,560
Speaker 2: two weeks. But the guys believed, they believed in what

623
00:30:11,600 --> 00:30:15,320
Speaker 2: he was selling, they believed what he was teaching, they

624
00:30:15,360 --> 00:30:19,080
Speaker 2: believed in the scheme, and with their backs against the

625
00:30:19,120 --> 00:30:21,560
Speaker 2: wall here and trying to avoid going on in three,

626
00:30:22,200 --> 00:30:29,360
Speaker 2: every man did his job on that play, whether it

627
00:30:29,640 --> 00:30:34,480
Speaker 2: was you name it, whether it was the guys up front.

628
00:30:34,240 --> 00:30:37,080
Speaker 3: Freddie Robbin, the list, all of them.

629
00:30:36,960 --> 00:30:41,360
Speaker 2: Doing what their job responsibilities were on that play to

630
00:30:41,440 --> 00:30:44,120
Speaker 2: get their assignment done, for them to get the penetration

631
00:30:44,240 --> 00:30:47,200
Speaker 2: that they needed to knock the Dell Bets down for

632
00:30:47,280 --> 00:30:50,240
Speaker 2: a loss. And even the plays leading up to it.

633
00:30:51,080 --> 00:30:53,400
Speaker 2: It's not like Washington didn't almost score on a couple

634
00:30:53,480 --> 00:30:56,000
Speaker 2: of other plays, but this was the fourth down play,

635
00:30:56,040 --> 00:30:59,200
Speaker 2: this was the game, and this game right here flipped

636
00:30:59,200 --> 00:31:02,360
Speaker 2: the switch for the OCE seven giants made them believers

637
00:31:03,000 --> 00:31:06,160
Speaker 2: in what was being taught and what was being asked

638
00:31:06,160 --> 00:31:08,280
Speaker 2: of them could be successful.

639
00:31:08,760 --> 00:31:13,400
Speaker 1: Absolutely, and that's your gray bracket. Everybody always fun going

640
00:31:13,440 --> 00:31:16,240
Speaker 1: through these plays. It's a ton of fun. Place your vote,

641
00:31:16,360 --> 00:31:18,560
Speaker 1: tell us what you think the greatest play is in

642
00:31:18,640 --> 00:31:20,280
Speaker 1: New York Football Giants history.

643
00:31:20,520 --> 00:31:21,960
Speaker 3: Four bought Papa. I am John Schmelk.

644
00:31:22,000 --> 00:31:25,440
Speaker 1: Thank you for joining us on the Greatest Play Bracket

645
00:31:25,560 --> 00:31:27,560
Speaker 1: podcast for the New York Football Giants, brought to you

646
00:31:27,640 --> 00:31:29,120
Speaker 1: by Hackensack and Meridian Health.

647
00:31:29,360 --> 00:31:30,840
Speaker 3: Keep getting better again.

648
00:31:30,960 --> 00:31:33,560
Speaker 1: Go place your vote and check out Giants dot Com,

649
00:31:33,560 --> 00:31:36,440
Speaker 1: the Giants App, all the Giants social media platforms. As

650
00:31:36,440 --> 00:31:39,440
Speaker 1: we continue our coverage and celebrate the Giants one hundredth

651
00:31:39,440 --> 00:31:40,080
Speaker 1: anniversary