Clutch Resume: Eli Manning’s top 10 career-defining moments

1. Super Bowl 42 – The Great Escape and Helmet Catch – February 3, 2008

This moment needs no introduction, as I’m sure any Giants fan could tell you exactly where they were and what they were feeling when Manning escaped from an almost-certain Patriot sack and heaved the ball 32 yards down the middle of the field to David Tyree in perhaps the greatest, and most unlikely, catch in Super Bowl history. This decisive moment in their final scoring drive of the game gave the Giants a first down with 58 seconds left to play in the game.

Prior to that throw, Manning had somehow managed to avoid a sack. The head official of that game, Mike Carey, commented later about how close he was to blowing the whistle and calling “in the grasp”, which would have prevented one of the greatest Giants moments and possibly greatest Super Bowl moment in history.

What fans might forget is the 0-2 start the Giants had to begin the 2007 season, and the tenuous hold that Tom Coughlin had on the Head Coach position. Had the team not experienced some measure of success that year, Coughlin might never have coached this team, and this quarterback, to two Super Bowl championships.

After finishing the season with a 10-6 record, the Giants would go on to run the table with three road playoff wins in Tampa Bay, Dallas, and Green Bay before capping off their season against a near-perfect New England Patriots team.