7 Best New York Giants of All Time, Ranked

For as long as legal online NFL betting has existed, the New York Giants haven’t had any Super Bowl success, finishing with a record under .500 every year except 2022, when they went 9-7-1. 

However, if online sports betting were around between 2007 and 2012, that would be a far different story as they overcame some staggering football odds in their Super Bowl XLII (12-point underdogs) and XLVI wins (2.5-point underdogs). 

There’s been a plethora of talent to come through the Giants organization over the years, and below, I decided to stick with the top seven and rank them in order. 

7 Best New York Giants of All Time, Ranked

1. Lawrence Taylor 

Taylor played for the Giants from 1981 to 1993, playing in 184 games. He racked up 142.0 sacks in his career, which is the most in Giants history. He also recorded nine interceptions, two pick-sixes, two forced fumbles, and 11 fumble recoveries. 

He won back-to-back Defensive Player of the Year awards in 1981 and 1982 and picked up a third in 1986, which was an NFL record. It’s still tied for first with J.J. Watt and Aaron Donald. 

Taylor was also part of the Super Bowl XXI and XXV wins and was named the NFL MVP in 1986. He and Alan Page are the only two defensive players to ever win the award. 

During that 1986 season, where he won Defensive Player of the Year and MVP, he racked up 20.5 sacks. 

Taylor was an eight-time first-team All-Pro, two-time second-team All-Pro, and made 10 Pro Bowls. 

The Giants retired his No. 56, and he’s credited with over 1,088 tackles. 

He’s enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. 

2. Eli Manning

In completing 4,895 passes on 8,119 attempts for 57,023 passing yards, and 366 touchdowns, Manning holds the record in all of those statistical categories in Giants history. He has the passing record by nearly 24,000 yards. For perspective, that’s the entire career of Daniels Jones to this point, almost twice over. 

In addition to winning Super Bowls XLII and XLVI, he was the MVP in both games. The Super Bowl XLII win came during the New England Patriots’ undefeated season to that point. They would’ve finished 19-0 with a win, becoming the first team to accomplish an undefeated season with that many wins, but the Giants won 17-14 as Manning threw for 255 yards, two touchdowns, and one interception.

"The Helmet Catch"

Eli Manning to David Tyree

SUPER BOWL XLII#Giants–#Patriots
February 3, 2008 pic.twitter.com/LfBoIayPb2

— Kevin Gallagher (@KevG163) February 3, 2024

A few years later, the Giants would beat the Patriots again 21-17, and Manning threw for 296 yards and one score. 

Manning went to four Pro Bowls, was the Walter Payton Man of the Year winner in 2016, is in the New York Giants Ring of Honor, and the team retired his No. 10.

3. Michael Strahan

According to Pro Football Reference, Strahan finished with 141.5 career sacks, putting him a mere 0.5 behind Taylor for the franchise record. 

From 1993 to 2007, Strahan played in 216 games for the Giants, which is second most behind Manning’s 236. 

Strahan also racked up 666 solo tackles, 27 quarterback hits, 131 tackles for loss, four interceptions, two pick-sixes, 23 passes defended, and 24 forced fumbles. 

He was part of the Super Bowl XLII team, was Defensive Player of the Year in 2001, was four-time first-team All-Pro, two-time second-team All-Pro, went to seven Pro Bowls, led the league in sacks twice, was tied for the league lead in forced fumbles once, and the team retired his No. 92. 

Strahan is tied with Watt for the most sacks in a single season with 22.5. 

Today, Strahan is enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. 

4. Tiki Barber

No player besides Barber has more than 10,000 yards rushing in Giants history. In fact, the next closest to Barber’s 10,449 is Rodney Hampton with 6,897. 

If you were to double Saquon Barkley’s career total with the Giants, Barber would still have 7 more rushing yards. 

That’s all to show how dominant of a rusher he was during his 154 games with the team. He also ran for 55 touchdowns, which is second in franchise history behind Brandon Jacobs. 

While Barber played in 154 games, he only started 109 of them and didn’t really begin having a full-time workload until the 2000 season. 

He rushed for double-digit touchdowns twice (2002 and 2004). His best season came in 2005 when he rushed 357 times for 1,860 yards and nine scores. 

Barber sadly didn’t get to enjoy the Super Bowl XLII win as he retired the year before, but he was first-team All-Pro in 2005, went to three Pro Bowls, and is in the Giants Ring of Honor. 

5. Harry Carson

Winding back the clock to the 1970s and 1980s, Carson was a ferocious linebacker, reportedly leading the team in tackles in five of his 13 seasons. Unfortunately, there’s not a detailed record of his tackle numbers, but in a Monday night game against the Green Bay Packers, he racked up 20 solo tackles and five assists. 

Carson also added eight sacks, 11 interceptions, 14 fumble recoveries, and scored one touchdown. 

He was part of the Super Bowl XXI squad, was four-time second-team All-Pro, went to nine Pro Bowls, is in the Giants Ring of Honor and is also enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. 

6. Phil Simms

A two-time Super Bowl-winning quarterback who was the MVP of Super Bowl XXI, where he threw for 268, three touchdowns, and had just three incompletions, Simms is second in Giants history in pass completions (2,576), pass attempts (4,647), passing yards (33,462), and passing touchdowns (199). 

While he’s not in the Pro Football Hall of Fame, Simms was the NFL Man of the Year in 1993, went to two Pro Bowls, and won the Jim Thorpe Award in 1986. 

His best season came in 1984 when he threw for 4,044 yards, 22 touchdowns, and 18 interceptions. 

7. Mel Hein

Playing for the Giants from 1931 to 1945, Hein played two positions you wouldn’t expect to see one player manning: center and linebacker. 

He was a two-time NFL Champion, was the MVP of the league in 1938, was eight-time first-team All-Pro, went to four All-Star games, and is part of the NFL’s 1930s All-Decade, 75th Anniversary, and 100th Anniversary teams. 

Hein is in the Giants Ring of Honor, the team retired his No. 7, and he’s enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.