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New York Giants History continued...
The New York Giants were founded in 1925. Sports enthusiast Tim Mara paid $500 for an NFL franchise. He decided to call his team the Giants. At the time, the team played its home games at the Polo Grounds, which it shared with the baseball Giants. In 1927, under the leadership of Coach Earl Potteiger, the Giants won their first league title. This was due, in large part to the performance of legendary halfback Jim Thorpe, who had been recruited to join the team. During the entire season, the Giants shut out 9 of their 12 opponents and allowed their opponents only 20 points.
In the 1930's, Steve Owen took over the head coaching job. Owen was an innovative offensive coach who guided the New York Giants to the NFL Championship game eight times from 1933 to 1946. He developed the “platoon system,” in which separate players fill the offensive and defensive positions. In one game in 1934, the Giants were playing the Chicago Bears at the Polo Grounds in icy weather. The temperature was below 10 degrees. At half time, Coach Owen gave his players basketball shoes. The basketball shoes provided better traction for the Giants on the icy turf. The game became known as the “Sneakers Game.” This New York Giants team had several outstanding players. Among them were: end Red Badgro, center Mel Hein and halfback Tuffy Leemans, all were future Hall of Fame members. Hein, who was also a defensive lineman, won player of the year honors in 1938. Steve Owen left the New York Giants in 1953 with just six losing records in 23 seasons.
Frank Gifford was drafted by the Giants in the first round of the NFL draft in 1952. Gifford, who played as a halfback and a defensive back, was one of the rare NFL stars who played both defense and offense. Along with Gifford, and a new home in New York's Yankee Stadium, a new era in New York Giants football had begun. In 1956-1963, the Giants appeared in six NFL Championship Games, winning the league in 1956. Gifford led the Giants in both rushing and receiving from 1956 to 1959, which was a major accomplishment. In 1956, he was named Player of the Year. During this era, besides Gifford, the New York Giants had four other future Hall of Fame members. Offensive tackle Rosey Grier, linebacker Sam Huff, defensive end Andy Robustelli and defensive back Emlen Tunnell all used their extraordinary football skills to make the era of Giants football a memorable one. In 1958, the Giants played the Baltimore Colts for the NFL Championship, in what has become known as “The Greatest Game Ever Played.”
In the early 1960's, the combination of quarterback Y.A. Tittle and receiver Del Shofner sparked the Giants' offense. Shofner gained 1,000 receiving yards in 1961, 1962 and 1963. Tittle's 36 touchdown passes in 1963 stood as an NFL record for 21 years.
New York Giants football suffered a bit of a down period from 1964 to 1980, failing to make the playoffs in that span. During this time, the New York Giants played games in the Yale Bowl in New Haven, Connecticut and Shea Stadium in New York City. They moved into their new stadium, Giants Stadium, in 1976.
In the 1980's, the New York Giants experienced a major comeback. They reached the second round of the playoffs in 1981, 1984 and 1985. In 1987, the Giants defeated the Denver Broncos 39-20 in the Super Bowl. This gave them their first league title in 31 years. The roster was loaded with talented stars. Lawrence Taylor was named Player of the Year, on his way to becoming one of the most feared linebackers in the league. Quarterback Phil Simms compiled 3,000 passing yards for the third consecutive season. Coach Bill Parcells was also named Coach of the Year. Four years later, in 1991, the Giants reached the Super Bowl again, this time defeating the Buffalo Bills 20-19. That year, the Giants held 15 of their 16 regular season opponents to 21 points or less.
With the retirement of Simms and Taylor, and Parcells leaving the team, the Giants struggled during the late 1990's. However, in 2001, they made their return to the Super Bowl, this time losing to the Baltimore Ravens, 34-7.
Over the years, the New York Giants have had several members of the Hall of Fame. Sam Huff, Steve O'Neill, Ken Strong, Lawrence Taylor, Y.A. Tittle and Emlen Tunnell, all belong to this elite class.
The New York Giants still remain a competitive force in the National Football League. With current stars like Tiki Barber, Kerry Collins, Ron Dayne and Michael Strahan, the future of the New York Giants is very bright.
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