Shane Roper-USA TODAY Sports
Throwback Thursday | Giants Top Cowboys to Earn 2011 Playoff Berth
In Week 17 of the 2011 regular season, the Giants were set to face the Dallas Cowboys for the NFC East division crown.
At that point, it had been an up-and-down season for both teams and one that Giants fans weren't used to given how streaky the team was that year.
How streaky were they? The Giants went from a dramatic comeback win on Sunday night against the Cowboys just three weeks prior when defensive end Jason Pierre-Paul blocked what would’ve been the game-tying kick off the foot of Dan Bailey, to then losing the following week to Washington. This loss made a lot of people question if the Giants season was over.
However, little did anyone know that the Giants were just getting started. From my perspective, the season shifted back on track at the end of the first half against the Jets on Christmas Eve 2011. Victor Cruz’s 99-yard touchdown catch-and-run seemed to light a fire under the team, and they did not look back.
But the Giants still had one more obstacle to go through before having a chance at the postseason, and that was a home win-and-get-in game against the hated rival Dallas Cowboys.
After years of watching both Eli Manning and Tony Romo, who were still in their primes, it was hard not to have more confidence in Manning when it came to must-win games. Sure enough, Manning didn't disappoint.
At the time, I was only 15 years old, and I remember how memorable this night was, how electrifying the atmosphere at the stadium was and how the Giants came out and punched the Cowboys in the mouth.
One play that pretty much set the tide and helped the Giants snatch early momentum was the first touchdown of the game.
On 3rd-and-1, Manning rolled out to his left to find Cruz, who was able to turn the corner and out-run several Cowboys defenders on his way to a 74-yard touchdown catch and run.
The Cowboys offense was unable to get anything going, and this led to 21 unanswered points by the Giants on two touchdowns scored by running back Ahmad Bradshaw.
Unfortunately, momentum tends to shift, and things often even out. I was very familiar with the Giants blowing big leads, especially after they botched a 21-point lead to the Philadelphia Eagles just one year before in the infamous "Miracle of the Meadowlands II" game in which DeSean Jackson returned a Matt Dodge punt for a game-winning touchdown.
So it wasn't a surprise when the Giants allowed the Romo and the Cowboys to creep back into the game in the second half thanks to two touchdowns by Laurent Robinson.
Here’s where things got a bit nerve-wracking for the Giants faithful. The Giants faced a 3rd-and-7 and were in danger of going three-and-out. This would have given the Cowboys back the ball with full momentum--and the opportunity to tie things up.
Luckily, the Giants had Manning, who had ice in his veins. The quarterback faced heavy pressure but was able to spin out of it and heave the ball downfield to Cruz, who boxed out Cowboys defenders to come down with the catch.
At that point, you knew there was no way the Giants were going to lose this game.
Although the offense failed to put it in the end zone, they gave themselves a bit of breathing room by running down the clock and adding three points on a Lawrence Tynes field goal, extending their lead 24-14 in the fourth quarter.
The defense was able to step up again and force the Cowboys to punt the ball back to the Giants with under six minutes to play.
At this point, Giants fans were on the edge of their seats. But it was the "Manning and Hakeem Nicks" show on that final drive as a big catch-and-run set the Giants offense up with a 1st-and-goal at the 4-yard line.
On the next play, Nicks iced the game when he came through with the game-winning touchdown pass from Manning to extend their lead to 31-14 as time ticked down.
For Manning, this touchdown pass, his 15th in the fourth quarter that season, was an NFL record-setter for the most in a single season and the one that gave the Giants their first division title since 2008.
The win also helped the Giants lock down the No. 4 seed in the NFC playoff bracket and home-field advantage for the Wild Card round the following week against the Falcons.
The rest is history, as the Giants would not lose another game en route to their second Super Bowl title of the Manning-Tom Coughlin era.
One can point to many moments that set up that championship season. Still, for me, that Week 17 regular-season win against the Cowboys was critical as it not only helped build the momentum they needed, it came against a division rival.
