NFL: 25 Most Disappointing 1 Seeds In NFL Playoff History
By Nick Villano
25 Most Disappointing 1 Seeds In NFL Playoff History: 9. 2008 New York Giants
The 2007 New York Giants are the only team on this list to show up twice. They were underdogs throughout the playoffs, but they took down the undefeated Patriots in the Super Bowl and the NFC East-winning Cowboys in the Divisional Round. Coming out of that, they had a ton of momentum going into the 2008 season. They decided to make winning games a priority, as Eli Manning looked like the making of a superstar.
The Giants’ defensive front was still great despite Michael Strahan’s retirement. The team finished the season with the best record in the NFC, much different than the six seed they were when they won the Super Bowl just 11 months earlier. The big issue here was a loss of momentum towards the end of the season. After starting off the year 11-1, winning 15 of their last 16 games going back to the previous season’s playoffs, they lost three of their last four to end the season. The Giants were backing into the playoffs.
The Giants welcomed the Philadelphia Eagles in the first round. They lost to them just a few weeks earlier, but the Giants knew this is where it counted. Would they step up?
In a word, no. The Giants just didn’t respond in the playoffs. The Eagles and Giants traded field goals for most of the game, but the Eagles finally broke the ice in the fourth quarter with Donovan McNabb hitting Brent Celek for a touchdown. The Giants ended up sputtering in the fourth, and the Eagles finished with a lopsided 12-point victory.