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From : nubforlyfe
Added: Nov 25, 2008
The Miracle at the Meadowlands is the term used by sportscasters and Philadelphia Eagles fans for a fumble recovery by cornerback Herman Edwards that he returned for a touchdown at the end of a November 19, 1978 NFL game against the New York Giants in Giants Stadium. It was seen as miraculous because it occurred at a point in the game when the Giants were easily capable of running out the game's final seconds. The Giants had the ball, and the Eagles had no timeouts left. Everyone watching expected quarterback Joe Pisarcik to take one more snap and kneel with the ball, thus running out the clock and preserving a 17-12 Giant upset. Instead, he attempted to hand it off to fullback Larry Csonka and botched it, allowing Edwards to pick up the ball and run 26 yards for the winning score. Giants fans refer to the play simply as "The Fumble," though that name is generally used outside of New York for a play in the 1987 AFC Championship Game between the Cleveland Browns and Denver Broncos. It has been referred to as one of the most, if not the most, mistaken coaching decisions in American football. While this view is popularly held among sports fans, the reason why the call was made, and why it happened the way it did, has been overlooked in the ensuing years. As a result, all teams would line up differently when they ran out the clock. The terms reflect the different impact the play had on both teams. For the Eagles, a victory snatched from the jaws of certain defeat served as a morale boost, leading that season to a playoff berth and, two seasons later, the franchise's first Super Bowl appearance. But to Giants fans, it was the nadir of a long era of mediocrity, proof the team not only couldn't succeed but couldn't allow itself to do so. For them, it too would lead to changes that proved beneficial in the long run. It was the first meeting between the divisional rivals that season. The Eagles were in third place in the NFC East behind the Dallas Cowboys and Washington Redskins; the Giants in fourth. Both teams went into the game in similar situations but heading in different directions. They had playoff hopes, especially since this was the first 16-game NFL season, but likely would have to settle for a wild card berth due to the solid lead the powerful Dallas Cowboys had in the NFC East. Given the similarity of their records it was likely the outcome would have playoff implications since the first tie-breaker for a wild card spot is head-to-head record. Going into the game, the Giants were 5-6. A three-game losing streak on the road had made the team's playoff picture much dimmer since midseason. But a win at home against the favored Eagles could, the team hoped, reverse the trend and keep an outside shot at a playoff spot alive. Despite the team's storied past, the Giants had not played in the postseason since 1963 and had notched only two winning seasons since then. Although they were the league's fourth oldest franchise, they were almost a non-entity in the post-merger NFL. The move to New Jersey in 1976 had alienated some longtime fans, even if it made more seats available. Fans had never gone this long without a contender, but while they were growing restless they were still forgiving. However, there was little pressure they could bring to bear on the ones who could ultimately make changes, longtime team owners Jack and Wellington Mara, who managed team operations closely but feuded so bitterly with each other that at one point a partition had to be erected between their seats in the owners' box. The effects of this uncertainty and instability at the highest managerial level affected the team's play, most significantly when it came to some apparently inexplicable personnel decisions. It was not lost on fans that players (Craig Morton and Fran Tarkenton) and coaches (Tom Landry, Vince Lombardi) who had once been in the Giants' fold were now enjoying or had enjoyed great success elsewhere. The team also had passed over future stars for less able players in the annual draft. But all this was for naught. With far more fans wanting tickets than there were available at the stadium, the team was financially healthy no matter how poorly it had been performing on the field, and the Maras were widely seen as far too complacent.
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