1972 New York Giants season

1972 New York Giants season
Head coachAlex Webster
Home fieldYankee Stadium
Results
Record8–6
Division place3rd NFC East
Playoff finishDid not qualify
Pro BowlersQB Norm Snead
RB Ron Johnson
DE Jack Gregory

The 1972 New York Giants season was the franchise's 48th season in the National Football League (NFL).[1] The Giants had an 8–6 record and finished in third place in the National Football Conference East Division, three games behind the Washington Redskins.[2][3]

The Giants had two first-round selections in the 1972 NFL draft, and chose Eldridge Small and Larry Jacobson with the 17th and 24th overall picks, respectively.[4] Before the season, New York traded their starting quarterback, Fran Tarkenton, to the Minnesota Vikings for a package of players and draft picks that included quarterback Norm Snead, who led the league in pass completion average in 1972. The Giants lost twice to open the season, but went on a four-game winning streak afterwards. In their 11th game, the Giants defeated the Philadelphia Eagles 62–10, setting the franchise record for the most points scored in a game; it was also an Eagles record for the most points allowed. The victory put the team at 7–4 and in contention for a playoff berth. Two losses ended their postseason chances, but New York beat the Dallas Cowboys in the final game of the season to finish with eight wins. Halfback Ron Johnson scored nine touchdowns on running plays to top the NFL, and his 1,182 rushing yards broke the Giants' single-season record.[5] This was the last winning season for the Giants until 1981.[1]

Roster

1972 New York Giants roster
Quarterbacks (QB)

Running backs (RB)

Wide receivers (WR)

Tight ends (TE)

Offensive linemen (OL)

Defensive linemen (DL)

Linebackers (LB)

Defensive backs (DB)

Special teams


Rookies in italics

Schedule

Week Date Opponent Result Record Attendance
1 September 17 at Detroit Lions L 16–30 0–1 54,418
2 September 24 Dallas Cowboys L 14–23 0–2 62,725
3 October 2 at Philadelphia Eagles W 27–12 1–2 65,720
4 October 8 New Orleans Saints W 45–21 2–2 62,507
5 October 15 at San Francisco 49ers W 23–17 3–2 58,606
6 October 22 St. Louis Cardinals W 27–21 4–2 62,756
7 October 29 Washington Redskins L 16–23 4–3 62,878
8 November 5 Denver Broncos W 29–17 5–3 62,689
9 November 12 at Washington Redskins L 13–27 5–4 53,039
10 November 19 at St. Louis Cardinals W 13–7 6–4 48,014
11 November 26 Philadelphia Eagles W 62–10 7–4 62,586
12 December 3 at Cincinnati Bengals L 10–13 7–5 59,523
13 December 10 Miami Dolphins L 13–23 7–6 62,728
14 December 17 at Dallas Cowboys W 23–3 8–6 64,602

Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.

Standings

NFC East
W L T PCT DIV CONF PF PA STK
Washington Redskins 11 3 0 .786 7–1 10–1 336 218 L2
Dallas Cowboys 10 4 0 .714 6–2 7–4 319 240 L1
New York Giants 8 6 0 .571 5–3 7–4 331 247 W1
St. Louis Cardinals 4 9 1 .321 1–6–1 3–7–1 193 303 W2
Philadelphia Eagles 2 11 1 .179 0–7–1 0–10–1 145 352 L5

References

  1. ^ a b "New York Giants Franchise Encyclopedia". Pro Football Reference. Retrieved March 26, 2018.
  2. ^ "1972 New York Giants". Pro Football Reference. Archived from the original on May 1, 2009. Retrieved May 8, 2009.
  3. ^ "1972 NFL Standings, Team & Offensive Statistics". Pro Football Reference. Archived from the original on April 24, 2009. Retrieved June 10, 2022.
  4. ^ "1972 NFL Draft". Pro Football Reference. Retrieved September 4, 2014.
  5. ^ Whittingham, Richard (2005). Illustrated History of the New York Giants. Chicago: Triumph Books. pp. 160–163. ISBN 1-57243-641-7.


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