February 5, 2012. Indianapolis. The air inside Lucas Oil Stadium was thick, the kind of heavy atmosphere you only get when two titans who genuinely dislike losing to each other face off on the world's biggest stage. If you're asking who won Super Bowl XLVI, the short answer is the New York Giants. They took down the New England Patriots 21-17. But honestly? Just saying they "won" doesn't even come close to describing the absolute chaos of that night.
It was a rematch of the 2007 season's epic finale, and the vibes were eerily similar. You had Tom Brady, arguably at the peak of his powers, and Eli Manning, the guy everyone kept debating was "elite" or not. By the end of the four quarters, Eli didn't just answer the question; he buried it.
The Safety That Nobody Saw Coming
Most Super Bowls start with a bit of a feeling-out process. Not this one. On the Patriots' very first offensive play, Tom Brady dropped back into his own end zone. Justin Tuck—who was a total nightmare for the New England offensive line all night—collapsed the pocket almost instantly.
Brady, feeling the walls close in, chucked the ball deep down the middle. The problem? There wasn't a soul in a white jersey anywhere near it. The refs huddled, the crowd held its breath, and then came the signal: intentional grounding. Since he was in the end zone, it was a safety.
2-0 Giants.
It was a bizarre way to start, but it set the tone. It told everyone watching that this wasn't going to be a clean, by-the-books game. It was going to be a scrap. The Giants followed that up with a 2-yard touchdown pass to Victor Cruz (who did his signature salsa dance, obviously), and suddenly New England was staring at a 9-0 hole before they even broke a sweat.
The Middle Rounds: Brady’s Revenge
You don't keep Tom Brady down for long. He’s like a horror movie villain that keeps standing back up. After that shaky start, Brady went on an absolute tear, completing 16 consecutive passes—a Super Bowl record at the time. He carved up the Giants' secondary with surgical precision, finding Aaron Hernandez and Danny Woodhead to flip the scoreboard.
📖 Related: Heisman Trophy Nominees 2024: The Year the System Almost Broke
By the third quarter, the Patriots had surged to a 17-9 lead.
The momentum had completely shifted. It felt like the Giants were fading. Their run game was getting stuffed, and the Patriots' defense was making Eli uncomfortable. But here is the thing about those 2011 Giants: they were basically the "zombie team" of the NFL. They finished the regular season 9-7. They weren't even supposed to be there. They flourished when things looked bleak.
The Catch: Manningham’s Masterpiece
We always talk about the "Helmet Catch" from Super Bowl XLII, but honestly, the pass Eli Manning threw to Mario Manningham in the fourth quarter of Super Bowl XLVI was technically superior. It was a 38-yard laser.
With 3:46 left on the clock and the Giants trailing 17-15, they were pinned back at their own 12-yard line. Eli looked down the left sideline and saw Manningham streaking toward the boundary. He let it fly. The ball traveled over forty yards in the air and landed in a window the size of a shoebox.
Manningham snatched it, kept two feet in bounds while being squeezed by two defenders, and changed the entire game. Bill Belichick challenged the play because it looked impossible. The replay showed Manningham’s toes scraping the turf like a ballerina. Play upheld. The drive was alive.
The Touchdown Ahmad Bradshaw Didn’t Want
Then came the weirdest ending in Super Bowl history.
👉 See also: When Was the MLS Founded? The Chaotic Truth About American Soccer's Rebirth
The Giants had marched down to the New England 6-yard line. There was about a minute left. The Patriots, realizing they needed time for Brady to respond, literally stopped playing defense. They wanted the Giants to score so they could get the ball back.
Ahmad Bradshaw took the handoff and saw a hole big enough to drive a truck through. He realized halfway through the run that he shouldn't score. He tried to stop. He literally tried to sit down at the one-yard line to keep the clock running so the Giants could kick a last-second field goal.
But his momentum was too much. He fell backward, his butt hitting the end zone turf.
Touchdown.
The Giants took a 21-17 lead, but the stadium was weirdly quiet. The New York sideline was actually frustrated because they had left 57 seconds on the clock for Tom Brady. That’s an eternity for #12.
The Final Prayer
The game ended on a Hail Mary. Brady moved the ball to midfield, and with no time left, he launched one final high-arc pass into the end zone. A sea of hands went up. The ball was tipped—it felt like it stayed in the air for five minutes—and for a split second, it looked like Rob Gronkowski might dive and snag the deflection.
✨ Don't miss: Navy Notre Dame Football: Why This Rivalry Still Hits Different
It hit the grass.
The Giants were champions again. Eli Manning earned his second Super Bowl MVP, finishing 30-for-40 with 296 yards. He became one of only a handful of quarterbacks to win multiple Super Bowls and multiple MVPs, putting him in a very exclusive club with guys like Joe Montana and, ironically, the man he just beat.
Why This Win Still Matters
When people look back at who won Super Bowl XLVI, they often focus on the Patriots' dynasty "failing," but that’s the wrong lens. This was the peak of the Coughlin-Manning era. It proved that a team with a mediocre regular season record could get "hot" at the right time and take down a powerhouse.
It also solidified Eli Manning’s Hall of Fame resume. You can't tell the story of the NFL without those two wins over Brady. It remains a masterclass in defensive pressure and "clutch" quarterbacking.
Key Takeaways for Football Fans
- Pressure is Everything: The Giants didn't have the better secondary, but their front four (Tuck, JPP, Osi Umenyiora) made Brady move off his spot. If you want to beat an elite QB, you win in the trenches.
- The "Elite" Debate: This game essentially ended the "is Eli Manning elite?" conversation. Whether you liked his stats or not, the man delivered in the highest-pressure moments.
- Clock Management Nuance: Belichick’s decision to let the Giants score was a brilliant, albeit unsuccessful, gamble. It shows how top-tier coaches think three moves ahead.
- Don't Ignore the 9-7 Teams: The 2011 Giants remain the Super Bowl champion with the worst regular-season record. It's a reminder that the playoffs are a brand new season.
To truly appreciate this game, go back and watch the Manningham catch in slow motion. It is perhaps the most underrated throw in the history of the sport. While the Giants celebrated in a shower of confetti, the Patriots were left to wonder how the same team had managed to ruin their party twice in five years.
Check the official NFL archives or the Pro Football Reference box score for the full play-by-play breakdown to see just how close New England came to a different outcome on that final drive. Professional sports rarely offer rematches this poetic, and Super Bowl XLVI delivered on every single bit of the hype.