These were the days as Giants fans, though we didn’t know it. The 2011 season was a shocker, as most predicted Big Blue to finish 4-12. I, myself, thought we would be a 6-10 team at best. So, imagine our surprise when he won the NFC East and would later take down the New England Patriots again in Super Bowl 46. This was the game that put them on the path to another championship ring. Of all the times this team needed to win, it was this game, held on Christmas Eve, fourteen years ago—the Snoopy Bowl against the New York Jets, held every four years.
Trailing 7-3 in the second quarter and deep in their own territory, Eli Manning hit Victor Cruz on a short pass, which turned into an electric 99-yard run into the endzone, tying an NFL record for longest touchdown reception. The Giants would win 29-14, setting up a win-or-go-home game against the Dallas Cowboys in the season finale to determine who would clinch the division. Giants won 31-14, and the rest is history:
2011: 14 years ago today on Christmas Eve a huge moment in #NYGiants history. Needing a win & trailing the Jets, @EliManning hit @TeamVic on a short pass & Cruz took it 99 yards to tie an NFL record. This would kickstart NYG to a win & a Super Bowl title run pic.twitter.com/eeFZCWGK3J
— BigBlueVCR (@BigBlueVCR) December 24, 2025
These were better times for New York pic.twitter.com/a9EVhQifkD
— Barstool New York (@BarstoolNYC) December 24, 2025
For Eagles fans in 2017, it was Jake Elliott’s 61-yard walk-off field goal that set them on the path to the Super Bowl. Other teams that won and gone all the way can pinpoint other moments. For the Giants, this game and that touchdown pass were it.
Merry Christmas, everyone.
Enjoy the rest of the NFL season and the college football playoffs.
Take him, enjoy family, and remind your liberal relatives that Trump is still president.
We’ll be here for the midterms.
Onward.