Eli Manning pass to David Tyree Eli Manning ' s pass to David Tyree was an American football play involving the two aforementioned New York Giants players in the final two minutes of Super Bowl XLII on February 3 , 2008 . It was instrumental in the Giants ' 17 – 14 upset victory over the New England Patriots . It featured Manning escaping from the grasp of three Patriots defensive players , followed by Tyree making a leaping catch by pressing the ball against his helmet . NFL Films ' Steve Sabol called it " the greatest play the Super Bowl has ever produced " . The play was also named by NFL Films " The Play of the Decade ( 2000s ) " . The play has become known as " The Helmet Catch " . Lead up . Tyree had been used primarily on special teams and had only 4 receptions for 35 yards and no touchdowns during the 2007 regular season . Although Tyree was seldom used as a receiver during the regular season , he caught the Giants ' first touchdown of the Super Bowl early in the fourth quarter , giving his team a 10 – 7 lead at the time . The Patriots , undefeated on the season and heavily favored to win the game , scored a touchdown to take a 14 – 10 lead with 2 : 42 remaining in the game . The Giants then faced a 3rd down with 5 yards needed for a 1st down from their own 44 yard line with 1 : 15 remaining . Play . Manning called the play " 76 Union Y Sail " from the Giants ' playbook in hopes of connecting with a receiver downfield . On third - and - 5 from the Giants ' 44 - yard line , Manning took the snap in the shotgun formation and immediately faced pressure from the Patriots defensive linemen Richard Seymour , Jarvis Green , and Adalius Thomas . Green grabbed Manning by the shoulder while Seymour grabbed him by the back of his jersey and attempted to pull him down for a sack . Manning however was able to stay on his feet and duck under the arms of the Patriot defenders , before scrambling backwards into space at around the 34 yard line , and throwing the ball down field to Tyree at the 24 yard line of the Patriots . Fox announcer Troy Aikman said after the play " I don ' t know how he got out of there . " Had Manning been sacked , the Giants would have faced a fourth down with around 8 yards to go for a first , and would have needed to convert for the second time on the drive to keep their chances to win alive ( halfback Brandon Jacobs converted on a 4th - and - 1 three plays earlier in the drive to keep the Giants ' drive going ) . Due to the Patriots ' pressure , Tyree was unable to run his intended route and instead came back towards the line to give Manning an option down the field , stopping at the 25 yard line . As the ball arrived Tyree fell on the ground , along with Patriots defender Rodney Harrison who was attempting to knock it down . Initially , Tyree caught the ball with both hands , but a swipe by Harrison ' s arm caused his left hand to be knocked off the ball . However , Tyree was able to secure possession of the ball by pressing it against the top of his helmet with his right hand . Harrison pulled him down , and Tyree landed on top of him with the ball still pressed against his helmet . The play gained 32 yards for the Giants and gave them a first down with 58 seconds left . Four plays later , Plaxico Burress scored the touchdown that won the game for the Giants 17 – 14 . Nickname . Like other famous plays in the NFL , this play has been given nicknames , but , largely due to two separate unique occurrences in the play , consensus has not been reached on a single name . In 2008 , readers of the " New York Daily News " voted on nicknaming the play " Catch - 42 " as the favored name in reference to Super Bowl XLII and the kind of coverage the Patriots deployed against the Giants ' four - receiver set . Since then , David Tyree has adopted the " Catch - 42 " nickname as well as ESPN . com . Bill Simmons has claimed it should be named " The Helmet Catch " . Other proposed nicknames include " The Escape and the Helmet Catch " , " The E - mmaculate Connection " ( a pun on the Immaculate Reception ; the ' E ' standing for Eli ) , " The Double Miracle " , and " The Reception that Ended Perfection " . The blog Kissing Suzy Kolber suggested " The Giant Snatch " . " The Great Escape " was used by President George W . Bush during the Giants ' White House championship visit . " David and Eliath " was also suggested by David Tyree , due to its biblical reference . Aftermath . The catch won the 2008 Best Play ESPY Award . The award ceremony featured a spoof by host Justin Timberlake , who " revealed " that he had left gum on David Tyree ' s helmet , which helped him catch the pass ( since he caught it close to the top of his helmet ) . During the acceptance speech , David Tyree jokingly stated , " Justin , thanks for the gum . " Eli Manning also jokingly thanked his offensive line , " for giving me zero pass protection . " In an NFC Divisional Playoff game against the defending Super Bowl XLV champion Green Bay Packers on January 15 , 2012 , Eli Manning threw a Hail Mary pass at the end of the first half , which was caught in the end zone by Hakeem Nicks , giving the Giants a 20 - 10 lead . Nicks caught the ball by cradling it against his helmet , which prompted commentators Joe Buck and Troy Aikman to note the similarity to Tyree ' s catch . The Giants would go on to beat the Packers 37 - 20 . Legacy . Fox Sports lists Eli Manning ' s pass to David Tyree as the greatest play in Super Bowl history ; editor Adrian Hasenmeyer called the play " an insult to physics and Albert Einstein " . NBC Sports and NFL . com have also listed the play as the greatest Super Bowl play of all time . NFL Films founder Steve Sabol compared Manning to Fran Tarkenton and said that the play " defied logic , history , gravity and just about anything else you care to mention " . " The Huffington Post " called it one of the greatest sports plays in the 2000s .