Kevin Gilbride Giants Off. Coordinator

I’m not looking at what is happening to Eli. I’m looking at what’s happening down the field. I was wondering what the heck is going on and why he wasn’t throwing the ball because there was no one near Tyree. I’m screaming at him, “Throw the ball! Throw the ball!” I look over and I see the end of it where he is spinning out of the grasp of one or two linemen. Finally, he throws it up. By the time he throws it up, the far safety is playing two deep on the other side, on Plaxico’s side, and he’s able to come over. He sees how wide open Tyree is..

David Tyree Giants WR

I saw some green grass toward the middle of the field and just felt like as soon as I nestled into it, he gave me shot. It kind of had that “Chariots of Fire” music in the background as I am sizing up the football. I remember going up with two hands to make a play and I knew there would be contact, so in my mind I am just mentally bracing myself for the contact. So I go up with two hands and I remember the contact and I knew I had it and the only thing that I am saying in my mind is, “I got this and I am not letting this go.”

Tom Coughlin Giants Head Coach

On the Friday prior to the Super Bowl game, David Tyree probably has the worst practice of anybody I’ve ever seen. He can’t catch a thing, he drops every ball, ball hits him in the helmet, ball hits him in the shoulder, just he can’t catch anything that day.

Michael Strahan Giants DE

Couldn’t catch a cold. Couldn’t catch a cold butt-naked in the wintertime, man.

Tom Coughlin Giants Head Coach

When it’s over, Eli goes to him and says, “David, don’t worry about it. I understand. When it counts, when it’s necessary, you’ll make the play for us.”



"

Are you kidding me? Nah, there’s nothing I would do differently. Shoot, it was a football play.

Rodney Harrison

Eli Manning Giants QB

I saw a white jersey in the middle of the field. I was looking down the field just for somebody. I saw David and we were just kind of running out of time. It was third down and saw him in the middle, thought I’d put it up for him and give him a chance where hopefully he could catch it.

Plaxico Burress Giants WR

Rodney goes for the ball. If Rodney just runs into D.T.’s legs and flips him over, he doesn't make that play. But Rodney being Rodney, sometimes he's too smart for his own good. He's a ball hawk, he wanted that interception, and D.T. basically took it from him. I remember going over to David Tyree and I grab him like, “Oh my gosh, man, do you know what you just did? You saved the Super Bowl for us.”

Rodney Harrison Patriots Safety

Are you kidding me? Nah, there’s nothing I would do differently. Shoot, it was a football play. You get one of the toughest safeties in the history of the NFL trying to knock the ball out and it didn’t come out – big deal. They didn’t score on that [catch]. That’s what people don’t realize. You didn’t score on that [catch]. We still have football left. We have plenty of football left. That drained us. That took our focus off what it should have been: the very next play. That’s what I was more so disappointed about. I mean, a one in a million catch, it happens. It happens. But the thing I was most frustrated about is our inability to respond because we had responded so many times, so well during that year, and that was our character, that was our makeup. And for us not to respond was very disappointing.

David Tyree Giants WR

I remember Steve Smith coming up with some expletives. He is like, “Get off him, get off him. He caught it.” So I called Steve my bodyguard on that play because he was talking crap to Rodney for me.

Plaxico Burress Giants WR

The place is going bananas and David Tyree is like, “I don't know what's going on.” I'm like, “What are you talking about, boy? Get off the field.”

David Tyree Giants WR

I didn’t know anything about the catch. I’m looking at Eli like, “This guy, he just made the play of a lifetime.” Which he did, not knowing really anything that happened on my end. So all the credit, especially initially in those interviews, just went totally to Eli because I really didn’t know anything about the helmet. I had no idea, man. All I remember is getting that second hand back on the football, and I knew I secured it. And then at that point, you know, it’s just football and it’s kind of just like a blur at that point.

Mike Carey Super Bowl Referee

Our crew was right in tune with it. They had everything covered from every angle. I took a look at the replay the other day, and just the concentration in [back judge Scott Helverson’s] eyes and then Gary Slaughter, who was the line judge, he was the one who relayed the signal. And if you notice, we were there, got the ball spotted and were ready to go for the next play before Eli calls his timeout.

Amani Toomer Giants WR

The referees were spotting the ball, so I remember running up to the side like, “FedEx.” So every time there is a play before they can replay it, we say “FedEx,” which is a power play just so they can't go back and review the play. So I am like, “Everybody get up.” And then Eli was like, “Calm down, guys, calm down, we've got this.” So as soon as I saw it on the replay and I saw it on slow motion and you see it never hit the ground, I remember talking to Plaxico and Plaxico was like, “Man, we can't lose this game now.”

Domenik Hixon Giants WR

Before that play happened, the guys with the [Super Bowl champion] T-shirts were passing them out on the sidelines because they thought we were done. The disrespect shown almost made it like Eli was going to do it. It felt like it was a perfect dream.

Troy Aikman Fox Analyst

I think my analysis was something like – I was incredulous as far as the Eli escaping the rush and then the catch. It was just one of those moments when you just say, “Holy cow.” You just try not to be too much of the guy sitting on the couch responding to the play. But at the same time, it was one of those just bizarre moment that you’re like, “Did I really just see what I just saw?”

Joe Buck FOX Play-by-Play

I’m sure if you had a camera on us when that was ruled a catch and we’re looking at the replays, I’m sure our faces were showing shock that somebody can pull down a catch like that, basically pressing it against his helmet. And then of all people, it was David Tyree, who is known really for one moment – I wouldn’t say he would be the first guy you would name who is going to make some circus catch in that Super Bowl, but that’s kind of what those moments are. Somebody rises to the occasion, and a lot of times it’s not the guy you go in thinking is going to do it.

Troy Aikman FOX Analyst

It happens a lot to where maybe we can’t or won’t or don’t say something on the air and then we go to the commercial break and it’s like one of those, “Are you s******* me? What’s going on?” Those are the games, those are the moments that really make my job fun and a real privilege to be a part of it.

Joe Buck FOX Play-by-Play

It’s true. You can’t be the fan. You can’t be the guy overreacting at a Super Bowl party. You’re the guy there calling it. You have to err on the side of caution on plays like that. The easy ones to call are the ones where the guy is 20 yards behind the defense and it’s clearly a catch and he’s running to the end zone – anybody can call that. It’s the ones we’re talking about like the one with Tyree where you better be sure or egg is on your face as opposed to what happened on the field.

Bob Papa Radio Voice of Giants

Dick Lynch was in the booth, too, may he rest in peace. That was his last game he ever called before he passed away. I remember Dick sitting back -- and he always had an unlit cigar -- and I remember him saying something afterwards like, “Bobby, that is the most incredible thing. I’ve seen a lot of stuff. They’re not going to lose this game.”

Michael Strahan Giants DE

When he caught the ball, game was over. We didn’t have to score a touchdown at that point, the game was already over. We knew we were going to win because I felt our story was too great and our season was too great to end with a loss. After he caught the ball, it was like, “The miracle continues.”

David Tyree Giants WR

When I get back to the hotel, obviously it’s like a fiesta and the hotel is now party central and it was great and I was just living in the moment, hanging out downstairs with family, friends, you know, embracing teammates. And I said, “I need to go see what this thing looks like.” So I finally just run inside, they’ve got TVs playing highlights and I see the catch, and I’m like, for the first time in my life, my jaw drops. That was the first time in my life I was impressed with my own work. Then it really set in the next day because I never really had media attention really in my career and they’re asking me to do some stuff on camera from Arizona. The next thing, this storm arises as far as what is being called the greatest catch in Super Bowl history.

Bill Simmons The Ringer / Patriots Fan

(via email): I cannot talk about that game, be involved in an oral history about it, anything. I hate that game.