New York Giants

How has fan loyalty to Big Blue changed over the last two decades?

Published Jun. 30, 2017 6:28 p.m. ET

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In two decades, the New York Giants have seen losing streaks end and Lombardi trophies, unimaginable upsets and unfortunate injuries among the ups and downs over a constantly changing Giants organization.

It is worth looking into what has remake the same in terms of the Giants image to fans of the mid 1990’s, early 2000’s and present. The Giants have gone through multiple re-brandings, changes of coaching staff but will always promote loyalty within and beyond the confines of New York’s boroughs.

1980’s and 90’s under Bill Parcell’s leadership

When Phil Simms was taking snaps under Bill Parcells, the Giants were a special team to cherish because of a superior coaching ability of Parcellls and great, accurate arm of Simms. Simms 15 year career included a 78.5 quarterback rating and ranks among the all time greats. This was time before the hype of a nonconformist wideout or the bizarre comeback victory against the invincible New England Patriots several years ago. Mayor Rudolph Giuliani was on the local front page and people were concerned about improving the quality of life for New Yorkers, betting that the Yankees’ dynasty would never end and that Y2K was a myth.

Parcells led the Giants to a strong winning season although he is not remember with as much awe and reverence as Tom Coughlin in more recent memory.

Football was simpler and did not involve recent trends such as instant reply or the virtual yellow line of scrimmage. There was no redone television network then either. Fans would show up to the stadium in the bitter, chilly weather because they had a love for the game and Parcell’s leadership of the team.

Parcell will be recognized as the Giants great coaches for his excellent preparation before every game, attention to detail and flexibility as a head coach. According to Pro-Football-Reference.com, the Giants won at least 10 games since 1985 which the team in recent years has not come close to doing.

As football was played in a simpler time, fans could not post “tweets” or share pictures on social media and the strongest way of identifying with the team was making an informed decision to purchase a pint of beer at the concession stand and leap to a standing position when the Giants’ offense passed midfield.

2000’s Coughlin, McAdoo and Spagnuolo

Jan 8, 2012; East Rutherford, NY, USA; General view of MetLife Stadium during the NFC Wild Card Playoff game between the Atlanta Falcons and the New York Giants. The Giants defeated the Falcons 24-2. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee/Image of Sport-US PRESSWIRE

In the last decade, the Giants’ brand became better known with changes to the roster. The Giants were fortunate to draft Philip Rivers and then trade him for Eli Manning in 2004. Previously, a top–prospect Kurt warner did not have the same amount fandom as Eli. The Giants were in a slump and Eli provided the public with hope and change.

The coaching staff during this time period created a perception that the Giants had the expertise ad technical skills but would lose commonly due to lack of execution. During this period fans could be attached to the great Tiki Barber who is the franchise’s most valuable running back.

Met Life Stadium receives the reputation of a shrine to Giants fans who stuck with the team from the 1990s onward. The best part of being a Giants fan in this decade was not knowing whether the team could reach the playoffs given the lack of previous success, but always betting in their favor out of a faith in the organization. This was maybe when the Giants’ brand was at its highest watermark.

When the 2007-2008 season arrived, all of the waiting and patience of East Coast football fans identifying with Big Blue received the answer that was pined for. A couple of season later, the brand increased in significance when the 2008 “catch” resulting in a plays which would lead to a Superbowl win revealed that the Giants’ success was not a fluke.

Then, someone, anyone with ties to New York, however slight and however distant from New York City, could feel a sense of pride whenever the team’s name was mentioned in Sports Illustrated or ESPN the magazine.

2010- Present End of Coughlin-Era and McAdoo Inherits throne

Jan 15, 2016; East Rutherford, NJ, USA; (left to right) New York Giants general manager Jerry Reese , wwner John Mara , new head coach Ben McAdoo , Laurie Tisch and Jonathan Tisch pose for a photo during a New York Giants press conference at Quest Diagnostics Training Center Auditorium. Mandatory Credit: Noah K. Murray-USA TODAY Sports

Now is the best time to be a Giants fan, given the storied history of the past decade. The market for merchandise ha s expanded exponentially since the growth of e-commerce and the introduction of foreign markets to the NFL by commissioner Roger Goodell.

Fans’ expectations on the Giants are higher than before as they know what they are capable of. The 200 plus million dollar roster for the 2016 season paints a picture of a team destined to improve year after year. The 2014 and 2015 seasons may have been interruptions to the Giants’ final goal of winning another Superbowl in the next five years.

The Giants’ future resembles the trends in popularity as a brand with the rival baseball and basketball teams. The Yankees created a new stadium in 2009 to reestablish themselves after a steroid era that deflated many hopes of fans across the nation. The Knicks’ marketing campaign is always changing almost as frequently as the coaching staff and starting five-man rotation.

The Yanks and Knickerbockers have distinctive brands to New Yorkers, but the Giants selling point is its unpredictable success in the last ten years which cannot be written off, its players who come back as if duty-bound eager to reach the playoffs and a coaching staff has standards of winning through diligent execution as goo as any other team in the NFL. It is a special time to be a Giants fan and hopefully this will be the case for the next decade too.