Brandon Jacobs burst onto the New York sports scene in 2007 when he was one of the faces that helped bring the Giants their third Super Bowl championship. But before that, Jacobs served as Tiki Barber‘s backup in his first two seasons in 2005 and ’06.
Upon Barber’s retirement in 2006, Jacobs assumed the starting spot. Over the course of the 2007 championship season, Jacobs racked up 1,009 yards rushing and in the playoffs rushed for 197 yards on 62 attempts and four touchdowns, one of which was receiving. Also, that season was the premiere of New York’s “Earth, Wind and Fire” backfield that was comprised of Jacobs, Derrick Ward and rookie Ahmad Bradshaw.
In 2008, Jacobs and Ward became the fifth pair of teammates to rush for 1,000 yards in the same season. Jacobs had a career-high 15 touchdowns that season as well. After Ward’s departure in the 2009 off-season, Bradshaw and Jacobs continued their rushing dominance up until 2011 where they each picked up their second Vince Lombardi Trophy. In the playoffs that championship season, Jacobs rushed for 164 yards on 37 carries with one touchdown.
Jacobs and the Giants peacefully parted ways after that season, but his Giants career would receive a brief second act when he returned in 2013 to help out the team’s injury-prone running back situation.
Seven games and four touchdowns later, Jacobs called it a career and retired as a Giant. In his time as a Giant, Jacobs totaled 5,087 rushing yards, making him fourth on New York’s all-time rushing list.
Apart from what he did on the field, Brandon Jacobs was one of the Giants’ most visible personalities during his playing days. He was a fan favorite and one of the team’s strongest supporters in times of trouble.
When it looked like 2011 was going to be a lost year, Jacobs became a catalyst for the team’s rally in the second half of the season. One of the highlights of Jacobs’ rally was when the Giants defeated the Jets on Christmas Eve.
After a week that saw the Jets throwing jabs in the press at their co-tenants, the Giants kept quiet until game time. After the victory, Jacobs broke that silence with an adrenaline-filled post-game interview aimed at the Jets and head coach Rex Ryan, once again endearing himself as a key component of the team’s rallying core that led to their Super Bowl championship.