From unanimous votes to others coming painfully close to that honor, our Quarter Century Football Team is loaded with memorable names who won Super Bowls, earned Hall of Fame nods, and were part of some of the most unforgettable teams in New York history, in any sport.
The Giants enjoyed the Super Bowl success in this city since 2000, but there are still some top-tier Jets talent on our squad, and there were some very tight races to crack the roster that honors the best of New York football over the last 25 years.
Here are the results from our votes, starting with the offense. Presenting the WFAN Quarter Century Football Team, brought to you by CashApp!
Quarterback: Eli Manning, Giants (97.6 percent of votes)
Eli fell one single vote shy of being a unanimous inductee, with one vote going to Kerry Collins. Manning finished what Collins couldn’t, winning a Super Bowl in what was the greatest upset in the history of the Big Game, before taking down Tom Brady and the Patriots yet again four years later. Manning has two Super Bowl MVPS, threw two of the most famous passes in franchise history, and holds the team records for passing yards, touchdowns, and games. He was the obvious choice here.
Running backs: Tiki Barber RB1, Giants (87.8 percent of votes) / Curtis Martin RB2, Jets (73.2 percent of votes)
One of our own leads the backfield, and for good reason. Tiki finished his career with three consecutive Pro Bowl selections, including a First Team All-Pro honor in 2005, when he broke off a 95-yard touchdown run, the longest in team history. From 2000 on, Tiki averaged a whopping 1,359 rushing yards per season with seven touchdowns. Another no-brainer for the top spot.
Martin was another lock to be part of the Quarter Century Team backfield, even if some of his prime years came before the turn of the millennium. Still, Martin was a force in the 21st century, rushing for 1,000 yards or more in five straight seasons, only falling short of that mark in his final NFL campaign in 2006. Martin earned two Pro Bowl nods in that span, and led the league in rushing yards in 2004. The Hall of Famer is an all-time Jet.
Wide receivers: Victor Cruz WR1, Giants (76.3 percent of votes) / Amani Toomer WR2, Giants (62.5 percent of votes) / Odell Beckham Jr. WR3, Giants (60 percent of votes) / Plaxico Burress WR4, Giants (55 percent of votes)
A clean sweep for Big Blue! Wayne Chrebet was the lone Jets receiver to threaten to break the top four in the voting, but it was all Giants that won out. Cruz was the clear winner at No. 1, earning a Pro Bowl nod in 2012 while winning a Super Bowl with Big Blue. He is 11th all time in receiving yards in franchise history. Toomer is No. 1 in that category, spending his entire 13-year career with the Giants. Second on the all-time receiving yards list? That would be Beckham, a three-time Pro Bowler with the Giants and the Offensive Rookie of the Year in 2014. His New York tenure ended sourly, but when he was on the field, he was one of the best the franchise has ever seen.
Burress needed to win a tiebreaker vote over Chrebet to make this top four, but he won the tiebreaker round comfortably. His Giants tenure also didn’t end ceremoniously, but he was an integral part of the team’s Super Bowl title over the previously unbeaten Pats, and he hauled in 1,025 receiving yards that season.
Tight ends: Jeremy Shockey TE1, Giants (100 percent of votes) / Kevin Boss TE2, Giants (39 percent of votes)
Shockey was one of our two unanimous football votes, and why not? From 2002 to 2007, Shockey earned a First Team All-Pro selection, four Pro Bowls, a Super Bowl title, and finished with 4,228 receiving yards, the third most by a Giants tight end. Boss just beat out Anthony Becht by two votes to make this list, winning a Super Bowl with Big Blue and logging 1,600 receiving yards with 18 touchdowns in four seasons with the Giants.
Offensive line: Nick Mangold, C (NYJ), Shaun O’Hara, G (NYG), Chris Snee, G (NYG), David Diehl, T (NYG), D’Brickashaw Ferguson, T (NYJ)
Is anyone getting past this group? Mangold in the middle, a career-long Jet, earned seven Pro Bowl nods and two All-Pro selections, and is in the Jets Ring of Honor. Ferguson is in that Ring of Honor as well, another career-long Jet who earned three Pro Bowl honors. O’Hara won a Super Bowl and three Pro Bowls during his decorated Giants career, while Snee was a Pro Bowler four times for Big Blue, including an All-Pro in 2008. Diehl spend his entire 11-year career with the Giants and won two Super Bowls along with a Pro Bowl honor in 2009.
DEFENSE/SPECIAL TEAMS
Defensive line: Dexter Lawrence (NYG, 87.8 percent of votes), Quinnen Williams (NYJ, 75.6 percent of votes), Muhammad Wilkerson (NYJ, 56.1 percent of votes)
Wilkerson spent most of his Jets career as a defensive end, but he also logged some snaps at defensive tackle during his NFL tenure, so the 2015 Pro Bowler sneaks in this group, beating out Shaun Ellis by two votes. The other two members of this stout defensive front are still in their primes today, as Williams has been a menace for Gang Green, earning an All-Pro selection in 2022 to kick off a run where he was a Pro Bowler three years running. Lawrence has been just as much of a menace for Big Blue, as he also has been a Pro Bowler each of the last three seasons.
Defensive ends: Michael Strahan (NYG, 90.2 percent of votes), Justin Tuck (NYG, 61 percent of votes)
Strahan easily received the most votes of this group, hardly a surprise for a Hall of Famer who won a Super Bowl, was an All-Pro four times, won a Defensive Player of the Year award, and led the league in sacks twice. Since 1982, only five players have logged more career sacks than Strahan. His former Giants teammate Tuck also was an All-Pro during his time in New York, winning two Super Bowls and logging double digit sack totals in three different seasons.
Linebackers: Antonio Pierce (NYG 85.4 percent of votes), Jonathan Vilma (NYJ, 70.7 percent of votes), Mo Lewis (NYJ, 43.9 percent of votes)
Lewis was somewhat past his prime with the Jets by 2000, but he still managed to earn a Pro Bowl selection and play in 63 games from 2000 until his retirement in 2004. He scored his lone career touchdown after forcing a fumble in 2001, and spent his entire 13-year career with Gang Green. That was enough to beat out David Harris in our other tiebreaker on the Quarter Century Football squad. Vilma began his career right after Lewis refired, and he made an immediate impact with a Defensive Rookie of the Year award in 2004 before a Pro Bowl selection in 2005, when he led the league in tackles. Pierce, the lone Giant of this trio, earned his lone Pro Bowl nod in 2006 and had over 100 tackles in the first three seasons of his five-year career with Big Blue.
Cornerbacks: Darrelle Revis (NYJ, 100 percent of votes), Jason Sehorn (NYG, 31.7 percent of votes)
Our other unanimous winner, Revis is one of the most famous defensive players in Jets history, which is saying something considering the existence of the New York Sack Exhange. The Hall of Famer was a Pro Bowler five times in his Jets career, with one of them coming during his second tenure with the team. He was a First Team All-Pro winner three straight years, and finished his Jets career with 25 interceptions and three pick sixes. Sehorn won out in a crowded and close race for the second cornerback spot, edging out Sauce Gardner by one vote. Sehorn only played three seasons in New York in this quarter century, but he logged multiple interceptions in each of those years, and logged two pick sixes.
Safeties: Antrel Rolle (NYG, 80.5 percent of votes), Landon Collins (NYG, 41.5 percent of votes)
Rolle earned the first-place vote by a landslide, which was well deserved given his Super Bowl championship and the two Pro Bowls, while Collins was a Pro Bowler three times, including a First Team All-Pro inclusion in his sophomore season. His two pick sixes are tied for third most in franchise history. That was enough to edge out Jamal Adams by one vote. Adams got plenty of love from our voters despite how his time in New York ended.
Kicker: Lawrence Tynes, Giants (70.7 percent of votes)
Tynes beat out Nick Folk and Jay Feely, and did so rather comfortably. No Big Blue kicker made more field goals during the last quarter century, and only two are in front of Tynes in the Giants’ all-time list. Tynes won two Super Bowls in New York, and was a huge part in those championships. He nailed the longest playoff field goal in Lambeau Field history in the 2007 NFC title game to set up his overtime winner, then sent New York back to the Super Bowl four years later with an overtime game winner against the 49ers in the NFC Championship Game.
Head coach: Tom Coughlin, Giants (97.6 percent of votes)
The second-winningest coach in franchise history, Coughlin coached the Giants to two improbable Super Bowl runs during his 12 seasons with Big Blue. Coughlin was 8-3 in the playoffs as Giants head coach, and led the team to three NFC East titles. That was enough to comfortably beat out the field, as Coughlin received every vote save for one tally in favor of Rex Ryan.