Matt Citak: The franchise has had some amazing duos over the last 100 years, especially on the defensive side of the ball, which made it tough to narrow it down to a single pair of Giants. I almost went with Osi Umenyiora and Justin Tuck here, as the two edge rushers were big factors in the team's dominant pass rush for nearly a decade. Instead, I'm going to go with a pair that played monumental roles in the franchise's two most recent championship runs. It might be a slightly unorthodox answer, but for me, the best duo in New York Giants history has to be Tom Coughlin and Eli Manning.
Coughlin was hired as head coach in January of 2004. Three months later, the Giants pulled off what ended up being the biggest trade in franchise history with the acquisition of Manning, the first overall pick in the 2004 NFL Draft. After sitting for nearly half of his rookie campaign, Manning was named the starting quarterback heading into Week 11 and never looked back. The head coach and quarterback combined for 105 total victories, 97 during the regular season and eight in the postseason, including wins over Bill Belichick, Tom Brady and the New England Patriots in both Super Bowl XLII and Super Bowl XLVI. The first victory over the Patriots was perhaps the biggest upset in Super Bowl history, as the Giants, a Wild Card team, prevented New England from completing the first 19-0 season in NFL history.
Of course, there were plenty of other people that played big roles in those two Super Bowls, especially on the defensive side of the ball. But the importance of Coughlin's decision to play his starters in a "meaningless" regular-season finale against the 15-0 Patriots cannot be understated. While the Giants lost that game in a back-and-forth nail-biter, it gave the team the confidence it needed heading into the rematch in the Super Bowl. Meanwhile, Manning put together two very strong postseason runs, including one of the all-time greatest playoff performances by a quarterback. Manning threw for 1,219 passing yards in the 2011 playoffs, which still stands as the most passing yards ever in a single postseason, with nine touchdowns (two off the all-time record) and just one interception.
Coughlin ranks second in franchise history with his 110 total wins as head coach, while Manning's 125 total victories are the most among any Giants quarterback. It's difficult to discuss one's success without mentioning the other, which makes Coughlin and Manning the best duo in Giants history.