The 2000 season was the New York Giants' 76th in the National Football League (NFL) and the fourth under head coach Jim Fassel.
The season marked the Giants' "NY" helmet logo returning again for the first full season since 1975. The team finished with a record of 12–4, clinching their first winning season, playoff berth, and division title since 1997. In the playoffs, they defeated the Philadelphia Eagles in the divisional round 20–10, then shut out the Minnesota Vikings in the NFC Championship game 41–0, making it to Super Bowl XXXV. However, the Giants were handily beaten by the Baltimore Ravens 34–7.
Offseason Additions SubtractionsLB Micheal Barrow (Panthers) LB Marcus Buckley (Falcons)CB Dave Thomas (Jaguars) T Scott Gragg (49ers)C Dusty Zeigler (Bills) QB Kent Graham (Steelers)T Lomas Brown (Browns) T Roman Oben (Browns)G Glenn Parker (Chiefs) WR David Patten (Browns)S Omar Stoutmire (Jets) S Percy Ellsworth (Browns) CB Phillippi Sparks (Cowboys) LB Scott Galyon (Dolphins) CB Jeremy Lincoln (Broncos) DT Bernard Holsey (Colts) C Lance Scott (Patriots)
NFL draft
Undrafted free agents
+ 2000 undrafted free agents of notePlayerPositionCollegeChris BoberGuardNebraska–OmahaBill BurkeQuarterbackMichigan StatePita ElisaraGuardIndianaJim GoffTackleLafayetteJack GoldenLinebackerOklahoma StateChris ZiemannTackleMichigan
Personnel Staff
Roster
Preseason Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue Recap 1 Chicago Bears L 8–20 0–1 Giants Stadium Recap 2 at Jacksonville Jaguars L 13–16 0–2 Alltel Stadium Recap 3 at New York Jets L 24–27 0–3 Giants Stadium Recap 4 Baltimore Ravens L 17–24 0–4 Giants Stadium Recap
Regular season The Giants began the 2000 season hoping to get over the hump of coming short during their past two seasons. They would go on to finish the year with a 12–4 record and represented the NFC in Super Bowl XXXV.
With revived quarterback Kerry Collins the passing game improved from a previously mediocre attack. The running game averaged 125.6 yards per game with Ron Dayne and Tiki Barber. The defense allowed just 246 points, with its greatest strength being against the run allowing a third-best 3.2 yards per carry.
Early in the season the Giants’ record stood at 7–2 and coming off two double digit wins, before they lost two straight home games to decline to 7–4. That was when head coach Jim Fassel made a bold move and publicly stated in the postgame press conference: "This team is going to the playoffs". This became the defining moment of the season, and the Giants won their next five games to become the #1 seed in the NFC playoffs.
Schedule Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue Recap 1 September 3 Arizona Cardinals W 21–16 1–0 Giants Stadium Recap 2 September 10 at Philadelphia Eagles W 33–18 2–0 Veterans Stadium Recap 3 September 17 at Chicago Bears W 14–7 3–0 Soldier Field Recap 4 September 24 Washington Redskins L 6–16 3–1 Giants Stadium Recap 5 October 1 at Tennessee Titans L 14–28 3–2 Adelphia Coliseum Recap 6 October 8 at Atlanta Falcons W 13–6 4–2 Georgia Dome Recap 7 October 15 Dallas Cowboys W 19–14 5–2 Giants Stadium Recap 8 Bye 9 October 29 Philadelphia Eagles W 24–7 6–2 Giants Stadium Recap 10 November 5 at Cleveland Browns W 24–3 7–2 Cleveland Browns Stadium Recap 11 November 12 St. Louis Rams L 24–38 7–3 Giants Stadium Recap 12 November 19 Detroit Lions L 21–31 7–4 Giants Stadium Recap 13 November 26 at Arizona Cardinals W 31–7 8–4 Sun Devil Stadium Recap 14 December 3 at Washington Redskins W 9–7 9–4 FedExField Recap 15 December 10 Pittsburgh Steelers W 30–10 10–4 Giants Stadium Recap 16 December 17 at Dallas Cowboys W 17–13 11–4 Texas Stadium Recap 17 Jacksonville Jaguars W 28–25 12–4 Giants Stadium Recap Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.
Game summaries Week 1: vs. Arizona Cardinals
On a stiflingly humid afternoon, the Giants began their 2000 campaign after a winless preseason with new uniforms on a new grass field for their 25th year at Giants Stadium against the Cardinals, who had swept the two-game series in 1999. Their second drive saw quarterback Kerry Collins complete third-down passes to wide receiver Ike Hilliard and fullback Greg Comella; then on the last play of the first quarter, the Giants took a 7–0 lead when running back Tiki Barber took a pitch from Collins to his right, saw no room to run, reversed back to the left, and outraced the pursuit for a 10-yard touchdown, diving to the pylon on the play.
New York's defense prevented Arizona from crossing midfield on their first four possessions, while Barber broke out for a 78-yard touchdown run, the longest run of his NFL career, to give them a 14–0 lead. Led by the arm and legs of quarterback Jake Plummer, the Cardinals finally mounted a drive into the red zone, but Plummer lost the snap on 4th-and-Inches, and new linebacker Micheal Barrow recovered. Chunk plays by Barber, Comella and tight end Dan Campbell put the Giants over midfield late in the first half, but Comella fumbled a pass away to Pro Bowl cornerback Aeneas Williams; consecutive passes from Plummer to wide receiver David Boston put the Cardinals back in field goal range. However, Arizona failed to capitalize when Plummer's pass for Frank Sanders was intercepted by defensive back Emmanuel McDaniel, who also picked off a Hail Mary heave on the last play of the half, preserving New York's halftime shutout.
Neither team picked up a first down in the third quarter until Plummer threw his third interception, this one to safety Shaun Williams, making his first NFL start. His 40-yard return and a 29-yard completion to Hilliard put the Giants at the 5-yard line; but on third down, Collins was picked off by safety Kwamie Lassiter. Unable to sustain the run, the Cardinals had Plummer—missing veteran receiver Rob Moore due to a torn anterior cruciate ligament—air out passes to Boston and Sanders, along with running back Michael Pittman; the 13-play, 79-yard drive resulted in a 32-yard Cary Blanchard field goal, cutting New York's lead to 14–3 heading into the fourth quarter.
The Giants confidently took time off the clock with their ground game, with Barber joined by their first-round rookie Ron Dayne as they drove 82 yards in 15 plays, with Dayne the reigning Heisman Trophy winner cashing in with a 7-yard touchdown rumble to extend New York to a 21–3 lead. Arizona mounted a late rally when Plummer—who threw for 318 yards on the day—completed 6-of-7 passes, including a touchdown pass to Boston, and then Mark Maddox recovered the ensuing onside kick before Plummer led them to another score on a throw to Boston with 32 seconds left; the two-point conversion failed, but the score was now 21–16. However, Blanchard's next onside try went out of bounds, securing a Week 1 win, New York's fourth straight under head coach Jim Fassel.
The game was delayed for 23 minutes in the third quarter by referee Bill Carollo due to thunderstorms in the surrounding area, forcing both teams to take shelter in their respective locker rooms.
Although it was a relatively unimpressive win for the Giants considering the close game against the eventually 3–13 Cardinals (who also finished last in DVOA for the 2000 season according to Football Outsiders), the Giants were 1–0. The game also introduced the football world to "Thunder and Lightning," the nickname given to the Dayne/Barber tandem. The lightning-fast Barber ran for a career-high 144 yards on just 13 carries, while the thunderously powerful Dayne rushed for 78 yards on 23 carries. After averaging only 88.3 rushing yards in 1999, the Giants as a team totaled 223 yards behind a revamped offensive line against Arizona's depleted defensive front.
Week 2: at Philadelphia Eagles
With the Giants coming off a win over the woeful Cardinals and the Eagles coming off a blowout win despite extreme heat in Dallas, the Eagles were favored on their home turf in this Week 2 matchup; however, the Giants continued their recent rivalry dominance with an impressive win.
They averted disaster on the third play from scrimmage when Kerry Collins had the ball stripped from behind by defensive end Hugh Douglas but recovered by wide receiver Amani Toomer. However, the drive stalled when right tackle Luke Petitgout was flagged for a false start on 4th-and-Inches from Philadelphia's 34-yard line. Their next possession saw Collins hit a screen pass to Tiki Barber for 20 yards and then drill a third-down strike to Ike Hilliard to set up a 32-yard Brad Daluiso field goal.
The Eagles struggled to get untracked, with running back Duce Staley, who had rushed for 201 yards the previous week, failing to find room to run. Their first three drives netted no first downs, while a 23-yard run on an inside draw by Barber led to another Daluiso field goal early in the second quarter. Quarterback Donovan McNabb finally sparked the Eagles with a 15-yard scramble and a 31-yard pass to tight end Chad Lewis to put them on New York's 4; but the Giants' aggressive defense—coached by defensive coordinator John Fox—led to a sack that forced Philadelphia to settle for a short David Akers field goal to make the score 6–3.
Akers's ensuing kickoff was muffed by rookie Ron Dixon, but he scooped it up and took it for a 43-yard return; Collins then completed a pass to Dixon for 15 yards on 3rd-and-10, and a 13-yard run by Ron Dayne set up 3rd-and-8 on the Eagles' 25. With Philadelphia bringing a blitz, Collins lofted a long pass to Toomer for a score, extending New York's lead to 13–3 with one minute left in the first half. The defense then forced a three-and-out, with linebacker Pete Monty blitzing and sacking McNabb on third down, and a poor punt by Sean Landeta set the Giants up on Philadelphia's 42. After two short passes gained 11 yards, Barber took the handoff on another inside draw, shifted left, cut around the blocks and raced 31 yards for a touchdown; the hostile Veterans Stadium crowd rained their team with boos as the visitors went into halftime with a 20–3 lead, having controlled the ball for over 22 minutes.
In the third quarter, Philadelphia abandoned the running game, with Staley rushing for only 11 yards, and McNabb completed six passes on their first drive; but on 3rd-and-1 from New York's 11, McNabb dropped back, was pressured by Michael Strahan and Jessie Armstead, and forced to throw it away. Akers came out for another short field goal; then Collins torched the Eagles' secondary with five straight completions, including a 30-yard strike down the seam to Hilliard for a score, giving the Giants their biggest lead at 27–6.
Needing to score quickly, McNabb completed a pair of passes to Staley which covered 26 yards, then hooked up twice with wide receivers Todd Pinkston and Charles Johnson before taking a quarterback draw 15 yards for an elusive touchdown; however, Akers's extra point was blocked by George Williams, keeping the score 27–12 late in the period.
Aided by a late hit on the kickoff by Stanley Pritchett, the Giants took over at their own 41; just like the previous week, they took time off the clock with their ground game, with Barber and Dayne picking up first downs, while Collins hit Hilliard for a third-down conversion. The drive eventually stalled, but Daluiso was good from 44 yards out, putting New York up 30–12. The Eagles picked up a first down with a deflected pass caught by center Bubba Miller, but they eventually faced fourth down short of midfield; McNabb was sacked by Armstead to quell their last hopes. Daluiso added another field goal and McNabb threw a late touchdown to Lewis, but Jason Sehorn recovered the onside kick to secure an efficient 33–18 win.