SAN FRANCISCO – Four years ago, Lawrence Tynes kicked the Giants into a Super Bowl in the frigid air of Green Bay. Sunday night, he did it again, this time through the damp, rainy air of Candlestick Park.
Thanks to an incredibly big play by their special teams, the Giants rose out of a difficult battle with the 49ers when Tynes with 7:06 left in overtime nailed a 31-yard field goal to lift the Giants to a 20-17 victory over the 49ers in the NFC Championship game. The kick, plus a determined defensive performance, also lifts the Giants to Super Bowl XLVI, where waiting for them in Indianapolis will be the Patriots in a rematch of the classic upset four years ago, when the Giants out in Glendale, Ariz. ended New England’s perfect season with a stunning last-second 17-14 triumph. Four years later, with 15 players from that title team sprinkling the roster with big-game experience, the Giants again take aim at Tom Brady and Co., this time with a full-grown Eli Manning waiting for him.
Unable to get anything accomplished with Manning in a collapsing pocket, the Giants were saved by a special teams play. Steve Weatherford’s punt sailed to Kyle Williams, who was handling all the return duties because Ted Ginn Jr. was injured and not in uniform. Williams caught the ball in stride but as he got motoring, rookie linebacker Jacquian Williams reached out with his right arm and poked the ball loose. Devin Thomas, the gunner, alertly pounced on it on the 49ers 24-yard line.
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From there, the Giants knew exactly what to do. They ran Ahmad Bradshaw three times, Eli Manning centered the ball and Lawrence Tynes lined up for a 26-yard field goal. The Giants were called for a delay of game penalty, making it a 31-yard attempt. After a time out by the 49ers attempting to ice Tynes, he drilled the game-winner, sending the Giants leaping into the air in jubilation.
This was an inelegant, defensive battle filled with stops, sacks and punts, an endurance test that went the distance, and beyond.
After taking a 17-14 lead on Manning’s 17-yard touchdown pass to Mario Manningham with 8:34 remaining in the fourth quarter, the Giants got the ball back three more times but could not do anything with it, as their offensive line has great difficulty holding off the fury of the Niners pass rush. The best shot for the Giants came when Manning hit Ahmad Bradshaw for 30 yards but after getting to the 49ers 46 a deep pass to Victor Cruz did not connect.
Giants coach Tom Coughlin had lost his past eight replay challenges but he won a big one with 11:08 left when replays showed the ball glanced off the right knee of punt returner Williams, giving the ball to the Giants on the Niners 29-yard line after Thomas alertly scooped up the loose ball. That was the first of two Williams’ returning mishaps. Six plays later, facing a third-and-15, Manning drilled a 17-yard scoring pass to Mario Manningham, who beat Tramaine Brock for his first reception of the game. With 8:34 remaining, the Giants had a 17-14 lead.
It didn’t last long. Williams got some redemption for his gaffe with a 40-yard kickoff return out to the 49ers 45. Runs of 17 yards by Alex Smith and 12 by Kendall Hunter put the Niners in position for David Akers’ 25-yard field goal and the game was tied at 17 with 5:39 to play. Those were the last points until the game-winner.
The Giants got a huge break with two minutes left in regulation when Bradshaw after a six-yard reception had the ball stripped out of his hands by NaVorro Bowman at the Giants 21-yard line. Bradshaw was ruled to have had his forward progress stopped, allowing the Giants to keep the ball.
In a game played in varying degrees of mist, rain and breeze, the Giants could not escape a down-and-dirty slugfest with the 49ers, the sort of low-scoring affair that favored the grittier team. The Niners gradually turned up the heat on Manning and their defensive line got the better of the Giants up front.
The only breakaway threat in the 49ers passing game, tight end Vernon Davis, came up with a huge play to give the 49ers an early lead. He got a free release off the line and simply outran Antrel Rolle to the right sideline, hauled in Alex Smith’s pass, tiptoed on the sideline and never stopped until he had a 73-yard touchdown reception midway through the first quarter.
The Giants allowed a golden opportunity to slip through their fingers when the 49ers botched a reverse and the loose ball bounced right into the arms of Osi Umenyiora on the Niners 24-yard line. Umenyiora couldn’t recover the fumble, though, and the 49ers dodged a bullet. Earlier, the Giants were fortunate when Manning was sacked by Ray McDonald, who forced a fumble. The ball sat on the soggy ground until right tackle Kareem McKenzie pounced on it on the Giants 30.
Trailing 7-0 and needing a spark, the Giants went to their energizer and Victor Cruz delivered with a 36-yard catch against cornerback Carlos Rogers. The Giants needed to make a mid-stream adjustment on the drive when center David Baas went out with an abdominal contusion but with Kevin Boothe at center and Mitch Petrus at left guard Manning was protected and he finally cashed in, finding Bear Pascoe on a 6-yard touchdown pass to make it 7-7.
On defense, the Giants regrouped from their one big gaffe and put the clamps on the 49ers passing game. The Niners went conservative late in the first half, keeping the ball on the ground and punting it back to the Giants with 1:36 left before halftime. With no time outs to work with, Manning found Cruz four times, working the middle of the field, setting up a Tynes 31-yard field goal with two seconds left to give the Giants their first lead, 10-7.