2011 NFC Championship Game Giants @ 49ers

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2011 NFC Championship Game - ( New Window )

This is why I don't buy it when people call the 2011 team fluky or lucky. They struggled and were inconsistent in the regular season, but they sure as hell earned that trophy in the playoffs.

They went 6-2 in their first eight games, and 7-1 in their final eight games (including postseason), but had a four-game losing streak sandwiched in the middle. I think the two extended stretches of great play outweigh the one bad month. They were also 4-2 against arguably the three top teams in the entire league that year - Pats, Packers and San Fran - and the two losses were each on the last play of regulation.

I think most NFL followers - especially Giants fans - were confident they could make a big run. The only game Vegas had them as clear underdogs was the Green Bay game in the divisional round. Hard to classify them as fluky when so few people were surprised they were knocking off the best teams in the league.

3 of those 4 losses in the middle of the year were also by 1 score.

The Saints game was the worst one.

We also lost to Seattle earlier in the year in a game where we were about to score and probably win the game and the ball kicked up off a cleat and (Babineaux IIRC) grabbed it and ran it back for a TD.

The 2011 team beat the Patriots IN Foxboro in November.

They also should have beaten the Packers in that regular season game at home - we got fucked on that Ballard TD that was ruled OOB.

"we dont get it here, we are done!"

That 2011 was anything but flukey.

Including the playoffs, look at the quality of opponents.

Dallas twice WITH Romo.
@ New England, then again in SB
@ New Orleans
@ SF twice, maybe not the SF teams of the 80s but Harbaugh had some good teams
NYJ before Rex imploded
Seattle was building up to a back to back SB team
Atlanta
Green Bay twice, lost a tight one with horrible call against

That’s Rodgers twice, Romo twice, Brady twice, plus Brees, Ryan and SF/NYJ defenses 3x

13-7 was awesome against that schedule.

"loss" to the Packers was the worst sham of an NFL game I've ever seen.

In comment 14015752 mrvax said:

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"loss" to the Packers was the worst sham of an NFL game I've ever seen.

Bunch of one sided calls in the playoff game too.

And they caught a break when it rained and the 49ers ground crew chewed up the turf extra special. TC was pissed.

Eli beat the best D since the '00 Ravens on the road, in the rain, in the NFCCG with a hostile crowd. It's his best win and it will almost never be talked about outside Giants circles.

The first thing I look at what when judging qb play, is passes nearly intercepted. Manning had more than a few that should have been intercepted.



JAWS

My favorite Giants game I have seen. Even over the super bowls.

was 49ers beating the Saints.

We wouldn't haven't gotten past the Saints in New Orleans...

Greatest Giant I’ve ever seen playing what has to the toughest game of his career. Eli’s so tough and yet you’ll not often hear anyone talk about this quality of his. People don’t think he had to gut out some games to keep that streak alive? Yeah, but that streak didn’t mean anything to anyone anyway. Eli’s a great, great player! This game... oh man. I remember the 80’s and 90’s Niners and I fucking hated those teams too.

The giants Thurman Munson!!$

That 2011 team was no fluke. And they have a big shiny trophy to prove it.

In comment 14015888 Jimmy Googs said:

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was 49ers beating the Saints. We wouldn't haven't gotten past the Saints in New Orleans...

Perhaps... but no one was ever going to beat the 2007 pats either.

Absolutely a classic

That's a house of horrors for us, even when we're good.

That '11 season was a treat. We went into that season as an afterthought & emerged as champions. Let's do it again!

In comment 14015936 djm said:

Quote:

In comment 14015888 Jimmy Googs said: Quote: was 49ers beating the Saints. We wouldn't haven't gotten past the Saints in New Orleans... Perhaps... but no one was ever going to beat the 2007 pats either.

Yeah, not so much. They were ripe to fall, especially with the last regular season game being so tightly contested with Giants.

from a physical, every play counts perspective since the previous NFCC in San Francisco. You couldn't watch that game sitting down.

I concur with most in that unlike 07, I was supremely confident throughout the 11 playoff run. I think Vegas showed huge numbers coming in on the G-Men vs Green Bay and against NE in the Super Bowl. Peak Eli powers.

that I have ever seen. Eli has huge brass balls and I will love him forever for this game.

In comment 14015712 arcarsenal said:

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This is why I don't buy it when people call the 2011 team fluky or lucky. They struggled and were inconsistent in the regular season, but they sure as hell earned that trophy in the playoffs.

Spot on. That team was banged up mid season, then quite unusually got healthier down the stretch - Baas, Tuck, Rolle, and Bradshaw IIRC all got better as they got healthier. Plus Chase Blackburn got up off his couch and played solid MLB.

People call that team a fluke bc their season stats were so-so, especially the running game. But the version of that team that hit the playoffs was one of the best Giants teams of the Coughlin era

The way the defenses weye playing in the 2nd half and beyond, you were just waiting for whoever makes the first mistake to lose. 0 chance for a good return, but sure handed Ross won us the game.

Tyler Sash. Terrible what happened to him RIP sir.

I'm probably splitting hairs but I will lie if I didn't say that I was slightly bothered by the fact that a large part of the win was their backup PR having a nightmare game. That makes me like games like the GB NFCCG in 07 more.

was as impressive as the 49ers. 49ers O went 1-13 on 3rd downs

2007 put Eli on the map. This game put Eli among the all time Giant greats.

Before the game, in an interview, Coughlin admitted that he told Eli there would be no "max protect" packages and the majority of the game would be in search of catching some luck, hitting on key spots.

That's exactly what happened. As for the critics noting the Niners handed us this game. That is bull. In sloppy rainy weather, the better team protects the ball. It's as simple as that. We took care of our business, they did not.

Playing at this level, that is the fine line between Super Bowl and playing golf.

In comment 14016225 jestersdead said:

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was as impressive as the 49ers. 49ers O went 1-13 on 3rd downs

yup after giving up that long touchdown to Vernon davis early in the game, the defense was locked in and shut down the niners. amazing how that unit turned things around after getting humiliated by the saints 6 weeks prior and played some really clutch ball in the playoffs.

Credit to Weatherford for making a hell of a play on that to get it where it needed to be on the hold.

Nightmares of Trey Junkin came thru my mind

Alex Smith led the game winning drive over the Saints, in the playoffs.

No chance of winning inside the Superdome if Alex Smith doesn't pull off that drive.

:-)

In comment 14016079 Don in DC said:

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that I have ever seen. Eli has huge brass balls and I will love him forever for this game.

There was a play near the end of regulation where Eli was getting hammered by three 49ers and found Bradshaw on the sideline for a first down. One of the gutsiest plays I’ve ever seen a QB make

How he doesn’t get knocked out on this play is remarkable
Fearless Eli - ( New Window )

In comment 14015800 JOrthman said:

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In comment 14015752 mrvax said: Quote: "loss" to the Packers was the worst sham of an NFL game I've ever seen. Bunch of one sided calls in the playoff game too.

The playoff game should've been 44-6 but the refs cheated for the Packers to keep it close.