In 2008, the New York Giants were flying high after knocking off the undefeated New England Patriots in Super Bowl XLII. They were the best team in football and showed it by winning 11 of their first 12 games.
The Giants appeared to be unstoppable, and poised to make a run to repeat as champions. Then, the bizarre happened. They either peaked too early or were derailed by an off-field incident as they lost three of their last four games and the game they won was an overtime win.
On November 28, before their Week 13 win over Washington, star wide receiver Plaxico Burress accidentally shot himself in the leg at a New York night club. He was not only lost for the season but was criminally charged. The distraction was too much for the Giants to overcome.
The Giants had played well enough to secure the No. 1 seed in the NFC Playoffs and were pitted against the Philadelphia Eagles in the divisional round at Giants Stadium. Philly had beaten the Giants at the Meadowlands a few weeks earlier.
The game had an ominous feeling. Although the Giants were favored by four points, the sixth-seeded Eagles got the better of the play. It was a low-scoring affair that saw the Giants go up, 11-10, early in the third quarter, then lose the lead for good and could not muster any type of offense mount a comeback.
The Eagles won, 23-11, the first NFL game to ever end with that final score and the Giants’ season was over just like that. What a waste.
“I am very, very disappointed,” Giants coach Tom Coughlin said. “I am sorry to see the season come to an end. There is remorse for opportunities lost.”
Quarterback Eli Manning also lamented about the missed opportunity.
“It all comes down to what you do in the playoffs. That makes your season a good one or a disappointment,” Manning said. “This is a disappointment. We felt this was a special team that could go far. The defense played outstanding today and gave us opportunities. Offensively, we didn’t do our job. We didn’t score enough points.”
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