New York Giants: The Top 5 Bill Parcells Moments
By Erik Lambert
#2: Super Bowl XXV
This was a game that looked like a no-win scenario for the Giants. They were going into it with both their backup quarterback (Jeff Hostetler) and backup running back (Otis Anderson). Their opponent was a Buffalo Bills team that had gone 13-3 that year, boasted the best offense in football and crushed the Los Angeles Raiders 51-3 in the AFC championship game.
Parcells knew what he was up against and knew there was only one way to win. He’d have to maintain control of the football and keep that Bills offense on the sideline as much as possible. “Shorten the game,” was what he told his offensive coaches. That meant running the football, chewing clock and asking the defense to limit the big plays allowed.
It almost fell apart when Hostetler was sacked in the end zone for a safety, making the score 12-3. New York didn’t back down. They responded with two long drives to end the first half and start the second, taking a 17-12 lead. Late in the 4th quarter, the Giants capped a drive that took over seven minutes off the clock with a 21-yard field goal to take the lead.
Buffalo managed to get in range for a 47-yarder to win it, but Scott Norwood famously pushed the ball wide right. Parcells’ plan had worked brilliantly.