History of the New York Giants (1925–1978)

They did not win another league title until 1956, aided by a number of future Pro Football Hall of Fame players such as running back Frank Gifford, linebacker Sam Huff, and offensive tackle Roosevelt Brown.

This period was characterized by the front office's bad decisions in the college draft, several ill-advised trades, and the team's fans' growing disappointment.

[1][2][3] Mara decided to invest the $500 in the Giants as opposed to heavyweight boxer Gene Tunney in a spur-of-the-moment decision,[4][5] and started the team with the statement, "an exclusive franchise for anything in New York is worth $500.

Mara rented the Polo Grounds as the team's stadium, and March developed a strategy that hinged on acquiring college stars such as Jim Thorpe.

Before the 1929 season Mara purchased the entire squad of the Detroit Wolverines, including star quarterback Benny Friedman, a team which had finished in third place the year before.

[40] Owen was decidedly blue collar; he grew up on a farm in Oklahoma where he was raised by a "prairie schoolmarm and a Cherokee strip farmer", and spent his summer vacations in high school working as a roughneck in a Burkburnett, Texas oil field.

[41] He became an innovator who was responsible for introducing the A formation on offense, and the Umbrella defense, the latter of which helped the team control several high power passers during his tenure.

[47] Before the 1933 season the team acquired University of Michigan All-American quarterback Harry Newman, and versatile free agent halfback Ken Strong.

[62] Due to traffic and the inability to find any athletic goods stores open on Sunday, Cohen was unable to return before the game started and New York, wearing conventional footwear, trailed 10–3 at the end of the first half.

Players donned the sneakers and the Giants, after allowing the Bears another field goal late in the third period, responded with 27 unanswered points in the fourth quarter to win their first NFL Championship game.

[65] The Giants filled the extra spots with players such as end Tod Goodwin, who played for coach Greasy Neale at West Virginia University the previous season, and running back Leland Shaffer, another rookie, this time out of Kansas State.

Wellington was a fan of George Washington University's Alphonse "Tuffy" Leemans, and he selected the obscure running back in the second round of the NFL's first draft in 1936.

In the fourth quarter however, Danowski threw a 23–yard touchdown pass to Hank Soar,[22] and the defense held the lead to give the Giants their third NFL championship.

[86] In 1949, halfback Gene "Choo-Choo" Roberts scored a league high 17 touchdowns,[87] and in 1950 he set a team record that would stand for over 50 years, when he rushed for 218 yards on November 12.

[93] Gifford was forced to play both ways due to a depleted roster, and in the second to last game of the season they lost 62–14 to division rival Cleveland.

A multi-talented player who could run, catch, and throw, Gifford was a star at the University of Southern California as a quarterback and runner, and while at the school he had bit parts in some Hollywood films.

The 1956 Giants featured a number of future Hall of Fame players, including 1956 league MVP Gifford, Sam Huff, and Roosevelt Brown.

Equally notable, the team featured as its coordinators future Hall of Fame head coaches Tom Landry (defense) and Vince Lombardi (offense).

[111] With seven seconds left in regulation, Steve Myhra kicked a 20–yard field goal to tie the score 17–17, sending the game to overtime for the first time in NFL history.

Led by league MVP quarterback Charlie Conerly, who passed for 1,706 yards, 14 touchdowns, and four interceptions,[26] they finished 9–3 in 1959 and faced the Colts in a championship game rematch.

[108] Nonetheless, the Giants had captivated New York by this time, even though the sold-out game was played in single-digit weather with 35 mph winds, only 299 of the 65,000+ fans who bought tickets stayed home.

"[125] The Giants defense, led by Hall of Famer Huff, held the Bears in check, but they lost 14–10, their third straight NFL Championship Game defeat.

[133] Frederickson was selected as the first overall draft choice in 1965 (over Hall of Famers Dick Butkus and Gale Sayers), but never rushed for more than 659 yards in a season during his injury-shortened career.

It was here that Morris Berman, a photographer for the Pittsburgh Gazette, snapped a now famous picture of the injured quarterback kneeling on the ground with blood running down his scalp.

Interest in the team was waning, especially with the rise of the AFL's New York Jets, who featured a wide-open style of play and a charismatic young quarterback in Joe Namath.

[143] The team also upset the division champion Dallas Cowboys 27–21 in one of their biggest wins in years, and the Giants' jubilant players carried Sherman off the field on their shoulders.

"[148] On opening day of the 1969 regular season, Tarkenton led the Giants to a 24–23 victory over his former team, the Vikings, by throwing two touchdown passes in the fourth quarter.

[138] Meanwhile, the Jets, much as the Giants had in 1964, fell apart, dropping to a 4–10 record after several consecutive seasons of success, with Namath breaking his wrist in a Super Bowl III rematch with the Baltimore Colts and missing the final eight games.

[162] Robustelli traded their 1975 first round draft choice to the Cowboys (who used it to select Hall of Fame defensive lineman Randy White) for quarterback Craig Morton in the middle of the 1974 season.

A group of fans hired a small plane to fly over the stadium on game day carrying a banner that read: "15 years of Lousy Football — We've Had Enough."