Global Information2007 New York Giants season information
| 2007 New York Giants season | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Owner | John Mara Steve Tisch |
| General manager | Jerry Reese |
| Head coach | Tom Coughlin |
| Offensive coordinator | Kevin Gilbride |
| Defensive coordinator | Steve Spagnuolo |
| Home field | Giants Stadium |
| Results | |
| Record | 10–6 |
| Division place | 2nd NFC East |
| Playoff finish | Won Wild Card Playoffs (at Buccaneers) 24–14 Won Divisional Playoffs (at Cowboys) 21–17 Won NFC Championship (at Packers) 23–20 (OT) Won Super Bowl XLII (vs. Patriots) 17–14 |
| Pro Bowlers | DE Osi Umenyiora |
| Uniform | |
 | |
The 2007 season was the New York Giants' 83rd in the National Football League (NFL), their 32nd playing their home games at Giants Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey, and their fourth under head coach Tom Coughlin.
The Giants finished the regular season 10–6 and in second place in the NFC East, improving upon their 8–8 record in 2006 in which they finished third in their division.[1] They qualified for the playoffs as a wild-card team as the #5 seed, and beat the #4 seed Tampa Bay Buccaneers 24–14. Next, they defeated the top-seeded Dallas Cowboys 21–17 and the #2 seed Green Bay Packers 23–20 (both of whom they had lost to in their first two games of the season by ten points or more) to become the National Football Conference (NFC) representative in Super Bowl XLII.[2] There, they defeated the heavily favored and previously undefeated 18–0 New England Patriots 17–14 and spoiled their perfect season, aided by the famous Manning to Tyree Helmet Catch.[3][4][5]
The 2007 New York Giants became the 9th wild card team in NFL history to reach the Super Bowl and the 5th wild card team to win the Super Bowl, and the very first NFC wild card to accomplish the feat. They were the third team in history to win three road playoff games en route to a Super Bowl and set a league record for most consecutive road wins in a single season (11), though the Super Bowl is played on a neutral field rather than an opponent's stadium.[6] It was the 7th league championship season for the New York Giants and their first since they won Super Bowl XXV in 1990. This season would also mark the end of defensive end Michael Strahan's NFL career as he retired following the Giants' Super Bowl victory.
2007 marked the third consecutive season that the Giants made the playoffs, which was only the second time that had happened since the AFL-NFL merger in 1970. Tom Coughlin joined Bill Parcells, Steve Owen, and Allie Sherman as the only head coaches in the history of the team to lead the Giants to the postseason three consecutive years.
The Giants season is widely regarded as one of the greatest cinderella stories in professional sports history, not only did they beat one of the greatest teams of all time in the undefeated Patriots, they did so as a wild-card team that had to win three playoff games on the road to get to Super Bowl XLII, and after looking very mediocre at times during the regular season.[7][8][9][10][11] In fact, based on regular-season performance, the 2007 New York Giants were the worst team to ever reach a Super Bowl,[12] a curiosity later surpassed when the 2011 New York Giants won Super Bowl XLVI to become the first team with a negative point differential to win a Super Bowl.[13] NFL Films named the 2007 Giants as the 53rd greatest team of all time in their countdown of the top 100 teams in football history.[14]
- ^ "Giants' scouting led to success in 2007". NFL.com. February 24, 2008. Retrieved July 25, 2022.
- ^ Bellear, Joseph (January 30, 2008). "Giants vs. Patriots: A Cinderella story". The Torch. Retrieved July 25, 2022.
- ^ Lampert, Jonathan (January 30, 2008). "The 2007 Giants: Overcoming All Odds". The Colgate Maroon-News. Retrieved July 25, 2022.
- ^ Langan, Kyle (May 20, 2009). "The 2007 New York Giants: Defined By a Moment". Bleacher Report. Retrieved July 25, 2022.
- ^ Battista, Judy (February 4, 2008). "Giants Stun Patriots in Super Bowl XLII". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved July 25, 2022.
- ^ "The 3 most unlikely Super Bowl teams in NFL history". theScore.com. Retrieved July 25, 2022.
- ^ "2007 NFL Division Standings". Nfl.com. Retrieved May 30, 2022.
- ^ Liebman, Aaron (May 10, 2009). "Why the 2007 New York Giants Really Were Super". Bleacher Report. Retrieved June 25, 2022.
- ^ "WFAN Favorite Teams Poll: #1 -- 2007 Giants". www.cbsnews.com. Retrieved July 25, 2022.
- ^ Conroy, Thomas (February 7, 2021). "New York Giants: History's Ultimate Super Bowl Underdogs". Last Word on Pro Football. Retrieved July 25, 2022.
- ^ Avery, Martin (March 8, 2009). "New York Cinderella Teams: '54 Giants, '68 Jets, 2007 Giants, and 2009 Rangers". Bleacher Report. Retrieved July 25, 2022.
- ^ "FB Outsiders: Giants one of worst teams to reach SB". January 24, 2008.
- ^ "2011 New York Giants Statistics & Players". Pro-Football-Reference.com.
- ^ Archived at Ghostarchive and the Wayback Machine: "100 Greatest Teams: Numbers 60-51 | NFL 100". YouTube.