It had to be 1986 NFC championship game. It had been so long and so many years of bad football that once they got things going in the right direction each year they grew, got better and as they approached getting to a Super Bowl the anticipation was so great that once they got to that point it was like one celebration after another.
The total and complete annihilation of the Niners. Then the total domination of the Redskins with the wind and the paper blowing all over the place then Jim Burt climbing into the stands and high fiving the crowd after the game was over. And it would be remis not to mention the Gatorade bath Parcells took followed by him squirting Harry Carson with a water pistol. Those were just some unbelievable moments I'll never forget. Then of course the take down of the Broncos.
As a diehard for me they were all special in their own right. And I got just as excited for them all. But that '86 just took it to another level that put them a notch above all the rest for me.
'86--the game itself--I can hardly even remember. I'd just moved to Boston, and all I remember are endless, elated (expensive!) phone calls home that whole stretch. (So soon after the World Series...what a year!)
Still, the recent ones were just so unexpected. And I think it's '11 for me. The D for both teams--almost too stressful to watch.
The 90 (91 really) NFC Title game was an all-time classic.
Two of the great pre-cap teams playing their asses off in an absolute war. Hard to top that one, though for me personally Simms's absence put something of a damper on it.
The two Eli-era games were great, and to some extent they were throwbacks because they were both physically brutal contests. The truth is, though, there were a lot of seriously mediocre players on the field on both sides in those games. Because of the effects of the salary cap, I don't think you can compare those four teams to the Montana/Rice 49ers or the LT Giants.
I think '86 simply because it was the first. The dark ages were
It's what the Pro Bowl could be if the players took it very seriously (not suggesting they should).
A bunch of HoFers and all pros on the field for the rights to the Super Bowl, two teams that didn't like one another, one that was trying to do something that had never before been achieved.
There will be no threepeat!
Have to admit, though - they were all great in their own way. The 86 team finally making it to the top and making Jay Schroeder cry, the utter violation of the Vikings in 00, the OT thriller that sent Brett Favre packing in GB, and the beating that Eli survived to push the Giants back in to the tournament to face Belichick and Brady again.
90 wins, but that's a beauty contest full of winners.
Mostly because I was at the game out in SF and it was just so back and forth. Eli turned in a masterful game while getting beat down in terrible conditions. Game-winner kicked in the endzone I was sitting in. That game will stick with me forever.
I actually puked about 2 minutes after Bahr hit the game winner. That game...I don't know how I would have handled a loss there...I was a complete mess. To me the Niners were Dallas, today's Pats, John Wayne and Freddie Kreuger all rolled into one. I never truly believed they could be slain in a game like that. Sure you could catch them on the right day and the field could tilt like it did in 85-86--plus those Niner teams weren't nearly as formidable and the Niner aura and mystic was still building back then. By 1990 the Niners were literally perfect. They never lost those close games. They broke hearts. For the Giants to turn the tables on them in their own stadium...I want to run through a wall this very second just thinking about it...
because they were all awesome. But the 90 game was just ridiculous.
Most enjoyable game I ever attended was the 00 NFC Title game. Can't let the super bowl loss ruin that game. Most fans don't get to see or attend that kind of game.
The total and complete annihilation of the Niners. Then the total domination of the Redskins with the wind and the paper blowing all over the place then Jim Burt climbing into the stands and high fiving the crowd after the game was over. And it would be remis not to mention the Gatorade bath Parcells took followed by him squirting Harry Carson with a water pistol. Those were just some unbelievable moments I'll never forget. Then of course the take down of the Broncos.
As a diehard for me they were all special in their own right. And I got just as excited for them all. But that '86 just took it to another level that put them a notch above all the rest for me.
2011
2000
2007
1986 (I was too young to appreciate)
Best day at Giants Stadium, ever.
Still, the recent ones were just so unexpected. And I think it's '11 for me. The D for both teams--almost too stressful to watch.
The two Eli-era games were great, and to some extent they were throwbacks because they were both physically brutal contests. The truth is, though, there were a lot of seriously mediocre players on the field on both sides in those games. Because of the effects of the salary cap, I don't think you can compare those four teams to the Montana/Rice 49ers or the LT Giants.
The '90 SF game was the best game and sticking it to the 49ers was sweet.
A bunch of HoFers and all pros on the field for the rights to the Super Bowl, two teams that didn't like one another, one that was trying to do something that had never before been achieved.
There will be no threepeat!
Have to admit, though - they were all great in their own way. The 86 team finally making it to the top and making Jay Schroeder cry, the utter violation of the Vikings in 00, the OT thriller that sent Brett Favre packing in GB, and the beating that Eli survived to push the Giants back in to the tournament to face Belichick and Brady again.
90 wins, but that's a beauty contest full of winners.
I would rank them as...
1990
2011
2007
1986
2000
I was too young for the 86/90 games.
The last two were special for different reasons.
Did someone here say they took their wife on their first date to an NFC Champ game?
Most enjoyable game I ever attended was the 00 NFC Title game. Can't let the super bowl loss ruin that game. Most fans don't get to see or attend that kind of game.