Indianapolis Colts vs New York Giants Matchup
New York Knicks guard Greg Anthony once said this about the Knicks-Pacers rivalry. “We would say, ‘Hey, we’re gonna win something tonight. We’re either gonna win the game or the fight.’”
The Giants and Colts don’t quite have this hated rivalry on the gridiron. They’re in different conferences and rarely face each other. They do have one thing in common. Winning.
The New York Giants are one of the NFL teams who joined in 1925. They are a franchise of excellence. Four NFL Championships and four Super Bowls. They have 19 championship game appearances, the most all time. The Giants built a loyal fanbase and rewarded them with success. Even though they moved to East Rutherford, NJ to play games at MetLife Stadium, they’re still NYC’s team.
The Colts have had success no matter where they’re located. In 1953, they were founded in Baltimore and immediately had success. They won three NFL Championships and added two Super Bowls, including the first after the AFL-NFL merger. The Colts moved to Indianapolis in 1984.
The History
There’s only been 20 games in this series. The Colts hold a 12-8 win advantage. The first game was Giants @ Colts in 1950. New York dominated the game 55-20. Early 2023 was the last time they faced each other with Giants winning 38-10. These teams have also faced twice in the playoffs before the Super Bowl era.
Best Games
The 1958 NFL Championship Game was Colts versus Giants. It was nicknamed, “The Greatest Game Ever Played.” The Colts led 14-3 in the second quarter after a TD pass by Johnny Unitas. The Giants stormed all the way back to take a 17-14 lead in the 4th quarter. Unitas needed to put together one of his patented comebacks. He led them down for a game tying field goal. This game became infamous because it was the first championship game to be “sudden death.” The Colts won the coin flip and drove down the field for NFL Championship winning TD rush.
2018 was an awesome game between these two. I was heavily rooting against the Giants in this game. It didn’t start off well for me. New York took an early 14-0 lead after the first quarter and led 17-7 at halftime. In the third quarter, the Colts scored two touchdowns and the Giants countered with one. They kicked a field goal in the fourth to make the score 27-21. Colts QB Andrew Luck led a late drive and threw the game winning TD pass with one minute left in the game to win 28-27. This game turned out to be the second to last game in Luck’s career after his shocking early retirement.
Greatest Players
Colts
- Peyton Manning: Franchise leader in pass yds (54,828) & pass TDs (399), 5x MVP, 10x All-Pro
- Johnny Unitas: First QB to throw for 30 pass TDs in a season and for over 40,000 yds, 3x MVP
- Marvin Harrison: Franchise leader in rec yds (14,580), rec TDs (128) & receptions (1102)
- Robert Mathis: Franchise leader in sacks (123) and forced fumbles (54)
Giants
- Lawrence Taylor: Considered best defensive player ever, 3x DPOY, 1x MVP, 2nd most sacks in franchise history (132.5)
- Eli Manning: Franchise leader in pass yds (57,023) and pass TDs (366)
- Michael Strahan: Most sacks in a season (22.5), 1x DPOY, franchise record in sacks (141.5)
- Mel Hein: All-Pro eight years in a row, 2x NFL Champ in 34’ & 38’
Who Wins the Next One?
The Giants haven’t had much success in this matchup, especially at home. They’re 3-7 at home and 3-3 on the road. In the past four games since 2006, the Colts have won all four. My immediate recommendation is to back the Colts even if they’re on the road. They seem to have success going to New York and have had success in the past decade and a half. The Giants currently have a young coach who they hope brings them back to greatness. Brian Daboll has turned things around quickly in New York. The Colts turned to their former Center, Jeff Saturday, to be their interim head coach. They hope he can help usher in another successful era of Colts football.