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1979 New York Giants

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1979 New York Giants season
Head Coach Ray Perkins
Home Field Giants Stadium
Results
Record 6–10
Place 4th NFC East
Playoff Finish did not qualify
Timeline
Previous Season Next Season
1978 1980

The 1979 New York Giants season was the 55th season for the club in the National Football League. The Giants had a 6–10 record in 1979 and finished in fourth place in the NFC East division.[1]

Offseason[]

Before the 1979 NFL Draft, Bill Walsh, who was the new coach of the San Francisco 49ers, flew to Morehead State University with assistant coach Sam Wyche to work out quarterback Phil Simms.[2] Walsh was so impressed with him that he planned to draft Simms in the third round, actually preferring him over another young quarterback they scouted and ultimately drafted, future Pro Football Hall of Famer Joe Montana.[3] The Giants, however, decided to make Simms their first-round pick to the surprise of many.[4] As Simms acknowledged, "most people have never heard of me."[4] When Simms' name was announced by Commissioner Pete Rozelle, his selection was booed loudly by Giants fans.[5] However, he became more popular with his teammates, who jokingly dubbed him "Prince Valiant" in his rookie training camp.[6]

NFL Draft[]

1979 New York Giants draft
Round Pick Player Position College Notes
1 7 Phil Simms * QB Morehead State
2 36 Earnest Gray RB Memphis
4 90 Phillip Tabor DE Oklahoma
5 117 Cleveland Jackson TE UNLV
6 145 Bob Torrey RB Penn State
6 158 Eddie Hicks RB East Carolina
7 172 Steve Alvers TE Miami (FL)
8 200 D.K. Perry DB SMU
8 201 Roy Simmons OG Georgia Tech
9 227 Tom Rusk LB Iowa
10 256 Dan Fowler OG Kentucky
11 282 Mike Mince DB Fresno State
11 284 Ken Johnson RB Miami (FL)
12 310 Tim Gillespie OG NC State
      Made roster    †   Pro Football Hall of Fame    *   Made at least one Pro Bowl during career

[7]

Regular season[]

Simms won his first five starts in his rookie year.[8] He led the team to a 6–4 record as a starter, throwing for 1,743 yards and 13 touchdown passes, and was named to the NFL All Rookie Team.[9] According to his 1981 Topps trading card, he was runner-up in 1979 for Rookie of the Year, losing out to future teammate Ottis Anderson.[10]

Schedule[]

Week Date Opponent Result Record Attendance
1 September 2 at Philadelphia L 23–17 0-1
67,366
2 September 9 St. Louis L 27–14 0-2
71,370
3 September 17 at Washington L 27–0 0-3
54,672
4 September 23 Philadelphia L 17–13 0-4
74,265
5 September 30 at New Orleans L 24–14 0-5
51,543
6 October 7 Tampa Bay W 17–14 1-5
72,841
7 October 14 San Francisco W 32–16 2-5
70,352
8 October 21 at Kansas City W 21–17 3-5
44,362
9 October 28 at Los Angeles W 20–14 4-5
43,376
10 November 4 Dallas L 16–14 4-6
76,490
11 November 11 Atlanta W 24–3 5-6
60,860
12 November 18 at Tampa Bay L 31–3 5-7
70,261
13 November 25 Washington W 14–6 6-7
72,641
14 December 2 at Dallas L 28–7 6-8
63,787
15 December 9 at St. Louis L 29–20 6-9
39,802
16 December 16 Baltimore L 31–7 6-10
58,711

Game Summaries[]

Week 7: vs. San Francisco 49ers[]

Week 7: San Francisco 49ers at New York Giants;– Game summary
1 2 3 4 Total
49ers 3 0 7 6 16
Giants 2 27 0 3 32

at Giants Stadium, East Rutherford, New Jersey

Game information
First quarter
  • SF – Ray Wersching 21 yard field goal, 49ers 3-0.
  • NYG – Safety, Dan Melville knocked ball out of end zone.

Second quarter

  • NYG – Phil Simms 17 yard rush, (Joe Danelo kick), Giants 9-3.
  • NYG – Earnest Gray 13 yard pass from Phil Simms, (Joe Danelo kick), Giants 16-3.
  • NYG – Doug Kotar 1 yard rush, (run failed), Giants 22-3.
  • NYG – Earnest Gray 11 yard pass from Phil Simms, (Joe Danelo kick), Giants 29-3.

Third quarter

  • SF – Mike Schumann 13 yard pass from Steve DeBerg, (Ray Wersching kick), Giants 29-10.

Fourth quarter

  • SF – Freddie Solomon 11 yard pass from Steve DeBerg, (pass failed), Giants 29-16.
  • NYG – Joe Danelo 37 yard field goal, Giants 32-16.

Top passers

Top rushers

  • SF – Wilbur Jackson - 10 rushes, 37 yards
  • NYG – Doug Kotar – 8 rushes, 48 yards, TD

Top receivers

  • SF – Paul Hofer - 9 receptions, 104 yards
  • NYG – Earnest Gray - 8 receptions, 169 yards, 2 TDs

Standings[]

NFC East
W L T PCT PF PA STK
Dallas Cowboys 11 5 0 .688 371 313 W-3
Philadelphia Eagles 11 5 0 .688 339 282 W-1
Washington Redskins 10 6 0 .625 348 295 L-1
New York Giants 6 10 0 .375 237 323 L-3
St. Louis Cardinals 5 11 0 .313 307 358 L-1

References[]

  1. ↑ 1979 New York Giants. Pro Football Reference. Archived from the original on 2009-05-13. Retrieved on May 9, 2009.
  2. ↑ Simms, Phil and Meier, Rick. Phil Simms On Passing. New York City: William Morrow and Company, 1998. pp. 74–75. ISBN 0-688-16108-1.
  3. ↑ King, Peter. "The Rating Game: Nfl Quarterback", Sports Illustrated, August 27, 2001, accessed May 10, 2009. ISSN: 0038 – 822X.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 Katz, Michael. "Giants Defend 'Value' in Choice of Simms; Perkins Optimistic Giants Selections", The New York Times, May 5, 1979, accessed March 20, 2007.
  5. ↑ Mooney, Roger. "No team takes Phil Simms first in today's NFL", The Bradenton Herald, April 22, 2007, p. 1D.
  6. ↑ Katz, Michael. "Giants Test Simms in A Workout; Pisarcik Overweight", The New York Times, May 11, 1979, accessed March 20, 2007.
  7. ↑ 1979 New York Giants Draft. The Football Database.
  8. ↑ Rovell, Darren. Roethlisberger in demand, ESPN, November 4, 2004, accessed January 1, 2007.
  9. ↑ Neft, David S., Cohen, Richard M., and Korch, Rick. The Complete History of Professional Football from 1892 to the Present. New York City: St. Martin's Press, 1994. p. 660. ISBN 0-312-11435-4.
  10. ↑ Topps Football (1981). Card #55.
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