www.championshipringclub.com
CHAMPIONSHIP RING
THE STORY OF 2008 SUPER BOWL XLII
NEW YORK GIANTS
Super Bowl XLII was an American football game between the National Football
Conference (NFC) champion New York Giants and the American Football Conference
(AFC) champion New England Patriots to decide the National Football League (NFL)
champion for the 2007 season. The Giants defeated the Patriots by the score of 17–14.
The game was played on February 3, 2008, at University of Phoenix Stadium in
Glendale, Arizona.
www.championshipringclub.com
2008 SUPER BOWL XLII
CHAMPIONSHIP RING
THE STORY OF
GIANTSNEW YORK
The game is regarded as one of the biggest upsets in the history of sports,as well as
perhaps the finest Super Bowl game. The Patriots entered the game as 12-point
favorites after becoming the first team to complete a perfect regular season since the
1972 Miami Dolphins, and the only one since the league expanded to a 16-game
regular season schedule in 1978. The Giants, who finished the regular season with a
10–6 record, were seeking to become the first NFC wild card team to win a Super
Bowl, and were also looking for their third Super Bowl victory and first since they won
Super Bowl XXV seventeen years earlier. This Super Bowl was also a rematch of the
final game of the regular season, in which New England won, 38–35.
www.championshipringclub.com
CHAMPIONSHIP RING
THE STORY OF
GIANTSNEW YORK 2008 SUPER BOWL XLII
The game is best remembered for the Giants' fourth-quarter game-winning drive.
Down 14–10, New York got the ball on their own 17-yard line with 2:39 left and
marched 83 yards down the field. In the drive's most memorable play, David Tyree
made a leaping one-handed catch pinning the football with his right hand to the crown
of his helmet for a 32-yard gain. Wide receiver Plaxico Burress then scored the
winning touchdown on a 13-yard reception with 35 seconds remaining. The game
was tight throughout. Only 10 total points were scored in the first three quarters. The
Giants consumed a Super Bowl record 9 minutes and 59 seconds on their opening
drive, but could only manage a field goal. The Patriots then responded with running
back Laurence Maroney's 1-yard touchdown run on the first play of the second
quarter.
www.championshipringclub.com
CHAMPIONSHIP RING
THE STORY OF
GIANTSNEW YORK 2008 SUPER BOWL XLII
After a scoreless third quarter, the fourth quarter saw a Super Bowl record three lead
changes, including New England wide receiver Randy Moss making a 6-yard
touchdown reception with 2:42 left to play before New York's game-winning drive.
Giants quarterback Eli Manning, who completed 19 of 34 passes for 255 yards and two
touchdowns, with one interception, was named Super Bowl MVP. Giants defensive end
Michael Strahan, who retired before the following season, had two tackles and one
sack. This game was the first since Super Bowl IX (a 16-6 Steeler win over the Vikings)
that neither team scored at least 20 points.
www.championshipringclub.com
CHAMPIONSHIP RING
THE STORY OF
GIANTSNEW YORK 2008 SUPER BOWL XLII
The telecast of the game on Fox broke the then-record for the most watched Super
Bowl in history with an average of 97.5 million viewers in the United States. With
this game, the Giants set a record with 11 consecutive victories away from home in
a single season. The Giants' matchup in Week 8 vs. the Miami Dolphins in London
was an official Giants road game because it was originally scheduled to be played
at Dolphin Stadium. The Giants were also officially classified as the "road" team for
Super Bowl XLII based on the annual Super Bowl rotation where the NFC
champions serve as the away team in even-numbered years. Also note that the
Week 5 game vs. the New York Jets was considered a "home" game for the Giants.
www.championshipringclub.com
CHAMPIONSHIP RING
THE STORY OF
GIANTSNEW YORK 2008 SUPER BOWL XLII