NFL team season
The 1974 New York Giants season was the franchise's 50th season in the National Football League. The Giants finished in last place in the National Football Conference East Division with a 2–12 record, the team's worst since 1966.[1][2]
The Giants’ home venue in 1974 was the Yale Bowl in New Haven, Connecticut,[3] and they were winless at home in seven games. They won only one of twelve games at the Yale Bowl in 1973 and 1974. The Giants played at Shea Stadium in Queens in 1975 and opened Giants Stadium in New Jersey in October 1976.[3][4]
The 1974 Giants hold the distinction of being the first team to lose a regular season game in overtime.[5] In week nine, the 2–6 Giants welcomed the cross-town rival Jets to the Yale Bowl. With the Giants leading 20–13 in the fourth quarter, Joe Namath faked a handoff to Emerson Boozer, then ran into the end zone for a touchdown which tied the score at 20–20, forcing overtime;[6] previously, a game between the Pittsburgh Steelers and Denver Broncos had ended in a 35–35 tie.[5] The Giants were denied a game-winning score when Pete Gogolak missed a 42-yard field goal attempt, despite protests from Gogolak that he had made the kick. The Jets subsequently won 26–20 on a five-yard pass from Namath to Boozer after 6:53 of play in the extra period.[6]
Offseason
Draft
[7]
Roster
1974 New York Giants roster |
| Quarterbacks Running backs Wide receivers Tight ends | | Offensive linemen Defensive linemen | | Linebackers Defensive backs Special teams | | Reserve lists
Practice squad Rookies in italics |
Schedule
Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Attendance | Recap |
1 | September 15 | Washington Redskins | L 10–13 | 0–1 | Yale Bowl | 49,849 | Recap |
2 | September 22 | New England Patriots | L 20–28 | 0–2 | Yale Bowl | 44,082 | Recap |
3 | September 29 | at Dallas Cowboys | W 14–6 | 1–2 | Texas Stadium | 45,841 | Recap |
4 | October 6 | Atlanta Falcons | L 7–14 | 1–3 | Yale Bowl | 42,379 | Recap |
5 | October 13 | at Philadelphia Eagles | L 7–35 | 1–4 | Veterans Stadium | 64,801 | Recap |
6 | October 20 | at Washington Redskins | L 3–24 | 1–5 | RFK Stadium | 53,879 | Recap |
7 | October 27 | Dallas Cowboys | L 7–21 | 1–6 | Yale Bowl | 57,381 | Recap |
8 | November 3 | at Kansas City Chiefs | W 33–27 | 2–6 | Arrowhead Stadium | 61,437 | Recap |
9 | November 10 | New York Jets | L 20–26 (OT) | 2–7 | Yale Bowl | 64,327 | Recap |
10 | November 17 | at Detroit Lions | L 19–20 | 2–8 | Tiger Stadium | 40,431 | Recap |
11 | November 24 | St. Louis Cardinals | L 21–23 | 2–9 | Yale Bowl | 40,615 | Recap |
12 | December 1 | at Chicago Bears | L 13–16 | 2–10 | Soldier Field | 18,802 | Recap |
13 | December 8 | Philadelphia Eagles | L 7–20 | 2–11 | Yale Bowl | 21,170 | Recap |
14 | December 15 | at St. Louis Cardinals | L 14–26 | 2–12 | Busch Memorial Stadium | 47,414 | Recap |
- Intra-division opponents are in bold text.
Game summaries
Week 3 at Cowboys
New York Giants (1–1) at Dallas Cowboys (1–1)
Period | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
Giants | 0 | 14 | 0 | 0 | 14 |
Cowboys | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 6 |
at Texas Stadium • Irving, Texas
- Date: September 29
- Game time: 2:00 p.m.
- Game weather: 64 °F (18 °C) • Wind 7 miles per hour (11 km/h; 6.1 kn)
- Game attendance: 45,841[8]
- Box Score
Week 9 vs Jets
Week Nine: New York Jets (1–7) at New York Giants (2–6)
Period | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | OT | Total |
Jets | 7 | 3 | 3 | 7 | 6 | 26 |
Giants | 3 | 10 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 20 |
at Yale Bowl, New Haven, Connecticut
- Date: November 10, 1974
- Game time: 1:00 p.m. EST
- Game weather: 50 °F (10 °C)
- Game attendance: 64,327[9]
- Box Score
Game information |
First quarter - NYJ – David Knight 19-yard pass from Joe Namath (Pat Leahy kick). Jets 7–0. Drive:
- NYG – Pete Gogolak 26-yard field goal. Jets 7–3. Drive:
Second quarter - NYG – Bob Tucker 2-yard pass from Craig Morton (Pete Gogolak kick). Giants 10–7. Drive:
- NYJ – Pat Leahy 34-yard field goal. Tie 10–10. Drive:
- NYG – Pete Gogolak 22-yard field goal. Giants 13–10. Drive:
Third quarter - NYJ – Pat Leahy 22-yard field goal. Tie 13–13. Drive:
- NYG – Bob Grim 12-yard pass from Craig Morton (Pete Gogolak kick). Giants 20–13. Drive:
Fourth quarter - NYJ – Joe Namath 3-yard run (Pat Leahy kick). Tie 20–20. Drive:
Overtime | - Top passers
- Top rushers
- NYJ – Robert Burns – 21 rushes, 101 yards
- NYG – Joe Dawkins – 11 rushes, 49 yards
- Top receivers
| |
Week 11 vs Cardinals
St. Louis Cardinals (8–2) at New York Giants (2–8)
Period | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
Cardinals | 6 | 0 | 7 | 10 | 23 |
Giants | 0 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 21 |
at Yale Bowl • New Haven, Connecticut
- Date: November 24
- Game time: 1:00 p.m.
- Game weather: 45 °F (7 °C) • Wind 9 miles per hour (14 km/h; 7.8 kn)
- Game attendance: 40,615[9]
- Box Score
Game information |
- Cardinals
- Jim Hart
25/42, 259 Yds, 2 TD - Terry Metcalf
15 Rush, 48 Yds - Mel Gray
5 Rec, 102 Yds, TD | - Giants
| |
Scoring summary |
Quarter | Time | Drive | Team | Scoring information | Score | Plays | Yards | TOP | STL | NYG | 1 | | | | | Cardinals | 36-yard field goal by Jim Bakken | 3 | 0 | 2 | | | | | Cardinals | 32-yard field goal by Jim Bakken | 6 | 0 | 2 | | | | | Giants | Ron Johnson 2-yard touchdown run, Pete Gogolak kick good | 6 | 7 | 3 | | | | | Giants | Bob Tucker 29-yard touchdown reception from Craig Morton, Pete Gogolak kick good | 6 | 14 | 3 | | | | | Cardinals | Earl Thomas 16-yard touchdown reception from Jim Hart, Jim Bakken kick good | 13 | 14 | 4 | | | | | Cardinals | Mel Gray 45-yard touchdown reception from Jim Hart, Jim Bakken kick good | 20 | 14 | 4 | | | | | Giants | Walker Gillette 17-yard touchdown reception from Craig Morton, Pete Gogolak kick good | 20 | 21 | 4 | | | | | Cardinals | 36-yard field goal by Jim Bakken | 23 | 21 | "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. | 23 | 21 | |
Standings
See also
References
- ^ "1974 New York Giants". Pro Football Reference. Archived from the original on May 1, 2009. Retrieved May 8, 2009.
- ^ "New York Giants Franchise Encyclopedia". Pro Football Reference. Archived from the original on April 29, 2009. Retrieved May 8, 2009.
- ^ a b Malafronte, Chip (October 8, 2012). "New Haven 200: New York Giants called Yale Bowl home from 1973–74". New Haven Register. Retrieved October 22, 2014.
- ^ Canavan, Tom (January 1, 2010). "Giants Stadium was symbol of sports in New Jersey". The Seattle Times. Retrieved October 24, 2014.
- ^ a b "NFL's First Experiment With OT". Pro Football Hall of Fame. Retrieved October 20, 2020.
- ^ a b Gross, Andrew (September 6, 2018). "Giants vs. Jets at Yale Bowl: Namath's bootleg a keepsake". Newsday. Retrieved October 20, 2020.
- ^ "1974 New York Giants Draftees". Pro Football Reference. Retrieved February 13, 2022.
- ^ 75 Cowboys. Dallas Cowboys. 1975. p. 72. Archived from the original on January 29, 2019. Retrieved February 19, 2021.
- ^ a b "The Yale Bowl and the Giants". Newsday. September 5, 2018. Retrieved January 26, 2019.
New York Giants |
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- Founded in 1925
- Based and headquartered in East Rutherford, New Jersey
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