NFL nostalgists in the early 30s, especially those raised in the New York metropolitan area, wake up enthralled today by the prospect of the meeting of San Francisco and the NY Giants in the NFC Championship game on Sunday. This meeting will bring memories of one of the last truly old-school games played, when the two teams met in the 1991 NFC Championship game. So many legends were involved that day: Joe Montana, LT, Carl Banks, OJ Anderson, Jerry Rice, Roger Craig, Ronnie Lott, Steve Young as a backup, Bill Parcells, Bill Belichick and on and on.
That season, the 49ers, on track for their 3rd Super Bowl in a row, and the Giants were the two best teams in the NFC. They both met mid-season at Candlestick, both undefeated if my memory serves, and the 49ers destroyed them. Late in the season, the Giants would lose Phil Simms for the season and leggy back-up Jeff Hostetler was given his shot. Giants fans had no real expectation or hope. Looking back, the game itself was brutal. One touchdown was scored compared to seven field goals. Hostetler was hurt and nearly didn't return and Joe Montana has his career effectively ended by this savage hit by Leonard Marshall.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FAABWqhNvtg[/youtube]
Sans Montana, the 49ers wilted. Up one and driving to kill of the game, Roger Craig fumbled. The Giants drove down to try a winning field. Here's how you know this an old-school game - check out Matt Bahr's facemask in the clip below. You can watch the whole game on youtube, but the 'last 4 minutes' will tell you everything you need to know about NFL in a bygone era by looking at the randomers on the sidelie- jerry curl, weird prayer groups, and skunk mullets. Montana would give way to Steve Young and a vision of a new kind of blitzkrieg-style 'touch football' would be borne. 21 years later, a playoff game in the same ground would feature 28 points in the final 4 minutes. This is still my definition of clutch football.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a7uY-ZKlIKI&feature=related[/youtube]
Bahr's field goal was the ballsiest field goal I'd ever seen then. I was ten years and still remember a wild pandemonium when the umpires signalled the field goal good. Best of all, the 2012 version of this game takes place in the same stadium. The 49ers crowd will be up for it, but the Giants will always feel like they own Candlestick.
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