Portal:American football/Selected article/April, 2007

The history of the New York Giants, an American football team which plays in the NFL's National Football Conference, comprises more than 80 seasons. The Giants were founded in 1925 by original owner Tim Mara in the then five-year-old NFL. Mara owned the team until his death in 1959, when it was passed on to his son Wellington. During their history the Giants have acquired six NFL championships, two of which came in Super Bowls. In just its third season, the team finished with the best record in the league at 11–1–1 and was awarded the NFL title. In a fourteen year span from 1933 to 1946, the Giants qualified to play in the NFL championship game 8 times, winning twice. They did not win another league title until 1956, aided by a number of future Pro Football Hall of Fame players such as running back Frank Gifford, linebacker Sam Huff, and offensive tackle Roosevelt Brown. From 1958 to 1963, the Giants played in the NFL championship game 5 out of those 6 years, but failed to win. The 1958 NFL Championship game, in which they lost 23–17 in overtime to the Baltimore Colts, is widely credited with increasing the popularity of the NFL in United States. From 1964 to 1980, the Giants registered only two winning seasons and were unable to advance to the playoffs. But from 1981 to 1990, the team qualified for the postseason seven times in ten seasons. During that period, they won Super Bowl XXI (1987) and Super Bowl XXV (1991). The team's success during the 1980s was aided by head coach Bill Parcells, quarterback Phil Simms, and Hall of Fame linebackers Lawrence Taylor and Harry Carson. The Giants struggled throughout much of the 1990s as Parcells left the team and players such as Phil Simms and Lawrence Taylor declined and eventually retired. They returned to the Super Bowl in 2001 losing to the Baltimore Ravens, and as of 2007 have made the playoffs in two consecutive seasons.

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