The 1977 New York Giants season was the franchise's 53rd season in the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...

(NFL). The

Giants A giant is a being of human appearance, sometimes of prodigious size and strength, common in folklore. Giant(s) or The Giant(s) may also refer to: Mythology and religion *Giants (Greek mythology) *Jötunn, a Germanic term often translated as 'gi ...

had a 5–9 record in 1977 and finished in a tie for last place with the

Philadelphia Eagles The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia. The Eagles compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East division. The team plays ...

. The Giants selected

defensive end Defensive end (DE) is a defensive position in the sport of gridiron football. This position has designated the players at each end of the defensive line, but changes in formation (American football), formations over the years have substantially ...

Gary Jeter Gary Michael Jeter (January 24, 1955 – March 9, 2016) was a professional American football defensive end in the National Football League (NFL). An All-American at the University of Southern California in 1976, Jeter was drafted by the New Yor ...

in the

1977 NFL Draft The 1977 NFL draft was the procedure by which National Football League teams selected amateur college football players. It is officially known as the NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting. The draft was held May 3–4, 1977, at the Roosevelt Hotel ...

with the fifth overall pick. Before the

season A season is a division of the year based on changes in weather, ecology, and the number of daylight hours in a given region. On Earth, seasons are the result of the axial parallelism of Earth's tilted orbit around the Sun. In temperate and pol ...

, the Giants signed quarterback

Joe Pisarcik Joseph Anthony Pisarcik (born July 2, 1952) is a former American football quarterback who played in the National Football League for eight seasons, from 1977 through 1984 after playing high school football at West Side Central Catholic H. S. (late ...

, who won the starting position to replace

Craig Morton Larry Craig Morton (born February 5, 1943) is a former American football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 18 seasons, primarily with the Dallas Cowboys and Denver Broncos. He played college football at California, ...

, whom they had traded to the

Denver Broncos The Denver Broncos are a professional American football franchise based in Denver. The Broncos compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West division. The team is headquart ...

. New York won their opening game of the year against the

Washington Redskins The Washington Commanders are a professional American football team based in the Washington metropolitan area. The Commanders compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) N ...

, prevailing 20–17 on a

field goal A field goal (FG) is a means of scoring in gridiron football. To score a field goal, the team in possession of the ball must place kick, or drop kick, the ball through the goal, i.e., between the uprights and over the crossbar. The entire ba ...

Joe Danelo Joseph Peter Danelo (born September 2, 1953) is a former American football placekicker who played in the National Football League for ten seasons with the Green Bay Packers, New York Giants, and Buffalo Bills. Born and raised in Spokane, Washing ...

in the final seconds. After losses in their next three games, victories over the

San Francisco 49ers The San Francisco 49ers (also written as the San Francisco Forty-Niners) are a professional American football team based in the San Francisco Bay Area. The 49ers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the league's National ...

and Redskins evened the Giants’ record at 3–3. Afterwards, New York lost six of their last eight games. With a season-ending 12–9 defeat by the

Chicago Bears The Chicago Bears are a professional American football team based in Chicago. The Bears compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) North division. The Bears have won nine NF ...

in overtime, the team concluded the year at 5–9. Offensively, New York's season total of 181 points was lower than all but four of the 27 other NFL teams. Pisarcik started 11 of the Giants' 14 games in 1977 and threw for 1,346 yards, but had 14 passes intercepted and only four touchdowns.

Bobby Hammond Robert Lee Hammond (born February 20, 1952) is a former American professional football player and coach. He was a running back in the National Football League (NFL) for five seasons with the New York Giants and Washington Redskins after playing ...

led the Giants in rushing with 154 carries for 577 yards.

Doug Kotar Douglas Allan Kotar (June 11, 1951 – December 16, 1983) was an American football running back for the New York Giants of the National Football League. Early years Raised in Muse, Pennsylvania, Kotar graduated from Canon-McMillan High Sc ...

and

Larry Csonka Larry Richard Csonka (; born December 25, 1946) is a former professional American football fullback who played for the Miami Dolphins for the majority of his career, along with the New York Giants for three years, and a short stint with the Mem ...

also rushed for more than 450 yards each. The team's leading receiver statistically was Jimmy Robinson, who caught 22 passes for 422 yards and three touchdowns.

Gary Shirk Gary Lee Shirk (born February 23, 1950) is a former professional American football tight end. He played with the New York Giants of the National Football League for seven seasons. He also played in the World Football League for the Memphis South ...

was the only other Giants player with multiple touchdown catches, while

Johnny Perkins John Eugene Perkins (April 21, 1953 – April 25, 2007) was an American football wide receiver in the National Football League who spent his entire career with the New York Giants. Perkins was born in Franklin, Texas. He played college football ...

was second behind Robinson with 20 receptions. On defense,

cornerback A cornerback (CB) is a member of the defensive backfield or secondary in gridiron football. Cornerbacks cover receivers most of the time, but also blitz and defend against such offensive running plays as sweeps and reverses. They create tur ...

Bill Bryant led New York with three interceptions. For the second consecutive season,

linebacker Linebacker (LB) is a playing position in gridiron football. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and line up three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage and the defensive linemen. They are the "middle ground" of defenders, p ...

Brad Van Pelt Brad Alan Van Pelt (April 5, 1951 – February 17, 2009) was an American football linebacker who played 14 seasons in the National Football League (NFL). A two-time All-American (1971, 1972) and the 1972 Maxwell Award winner as college football' ...

was the only Giant to make the Pro Bowl.

Offseason

NFL Draft

Roster

Schedule

Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.

Game summaries

Week 3

*TV Station: CBS *TV Announcers:

Lindsey Nelson Lindsey Nelson (May 25, 1919 – June 10, 1995) was an American sportscaster best known for his long career calling play-by-play of college football and New York Mets baseball. Nelson spent 17 years with the Mets and three years with the San Fr ...

Paul Hornung Paul Vernon Hornung (December 23, 1935 – November 13, 2020), nicknamed "the Golden Boy", was an American professional football player who was a Hall of Fame running back for the Green Bay Packers of the National Football League (NFL) from 195 ...

Atlanta Falcons quarterback Scott Hunter set up Monroe Eley's one-yard plunge early in the second period with an 18-yard bootleg and backup quarterback

Kim McQuilken Kim Edgar McQuilken (born February 26, 1951) is a former American football quarterback in the National Football League (NFL) for the Atlanta Falcons and Washington Redskins. Born in Allentown, Pennsylvania, McQuilken played college football at ...

led an 80-yard scoring drive in the final period to give the Falcons a 17–3 win over the Giants.

Week 5

*TV Station: CBS *TV Announcers:

Vin Scully Vincent Edward Scully (November 29, 1927 – August 2, 2022) was an American sportscaster. He was best known for his 67 seasons calling games for Major League Baseball's Los Angeles Dodgers, beginning in 1950 (when the franchise was located ...

Alex Hawkins Clifton Alexander Hawkins (July 2, 1937 – September 12, 2017) was an American football player who played professionally as a running back in the National Football League (NFL) for the Baltimore Colts and Atlanta Falcons. He excelled as a spec ...

Joe Pisarcik's 37-yard touchdown pass to tight end

and a pair of field goals by Joe Danelo helped give New York a narrow 20–17 victory, their first in four games. 49ers quarterback

Jim Plunkett James William Plunkett (born December 5, 1947) is a former American football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for sixteen seasons. He achieved his greatest professional success during his final eight seasons with the ...

started a San Francisco rally. Touchdowns by

Wilbur Jackson Wilbur Jackson (born November 19, 1951) is a former American football running back for the San Francisco 49ers of the National Football League (NFL). He was drafted in the first round of the 1974 NFL Draft out of University of Alabama by the 4 ...

on a one-yard run and wide receiver Gene Washington on a 47-yard pass made the game close.

Week 6

Week 14

Standings

References

New York Giants seasons

New York Giants The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Giants compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East division. ...

20th century in East Rutherford, New Jersey Meadowlands Sports Complex {{NewYorkGiants-season-stub