The New York Giants defeated the Denver Broncos 39-20 in Super Bowl XXI. The victory was the first league championship for the Giants since 1956.
The Giants actually trailed 10-9 at the half before scoring 26 unanswered second half points to secure victory. This was the second of four Super Bowl losses for Denver before finally breaking through in Super Bowl XXXII.
Driving Mr. Elway
The Broncos won the AFC West with an 11-5 record, and defeated the New England Patriots in the divisional playoffs. Then in the AFC Championship Game, they trailed at Cleveland 20-13 with 5:32 to play with the ball at their own 2-yard line. That's really the point where the legend of quarterback John Elway began to grow, as he led the Broncos down field on a game-tying drive that ended with a TD pass to Mark Jackson with 39 seconds remaining. The Broncos then won the game in overtime on a Rich Karlis field goal, sending them to their second-ever Super Bowl appearance.
Gatorade, is it "on" you?
The Giants were the dominant team in the league that year, going 14-2 to win the NFC East. Their defense led the way, featuring Leonard Marshall, George Martin, Terry Kinard, Carl Banks and two future hall-of-famers in Harry Carson and league MVP Lawrence Taylor. To celebrate victories, Carson would douse head coach Bill Parcells with a shower of Gatorade from the team's sideline Gatorade bucket, a tradition now generally practiced by all teams at all levels of football.
Here I come, Mickey
But despite the defense's dominant presence, it was Giants quarterback Phil Simms who stole the show in the Super Bowl. In a career which to that point had been filled with injuries and disappointment, Simms enjoyed his finest moment. He set a record for completion percentage (88% on 22-of-25 passing) in a post-season game, and was named MVP of the game. He also became the first person ever used in the "I'm Going to Disneyland" television advertisement campaign.
Scoring
FIRST QUARTER
DEN - Rich Karlis 48-yard FG
NYG - Zeke Mowatt 6-yard PASS from Phil Simms (Raul Allegre kick)
DEN - John Elway 4-yard RUN (Rich Karlis kick)
SECOND QUARTER
NYG - SAFETY, George Martin tackled John Elway in End Zone
THIRD QUARTER
NYG - Mark Bavaro 13-yard PASS from Phil Simms (Raul Allegre kick)
NYG - Raul Allegre 21-yard FG
NYG - Joe Morris 1-yard RUN (Raul Allegre kick)
FOURTH QUARTER
NYG - Phil McConkey 6-yard PASS from Phil Simms (Raul Allegre kick)
DEN - Rich Karlis 28-yard FG
NYG - Ottis Anderson 2-yard RUN (kick failed)
DEN - Vance Johnson 47-yard PASS from John Elway (Rich Karlis kick)
