In addition to HOF players, The Giants have had their share of legendary coaches, starting with Steve Owen.  He played on the line with HOFer Cal Hubbard, was voted to the all-time twenties team as a player and was voted to the HOF as a coach.  He played for the Giants for five years and coached them for twenty three.
He was the first guy I saw coach the team and devised the A-formation, a variation of the single wing that the team used from '37-'54, the year Steve retired from the Giants.  (He was away feom the game for a short period, but with football in his blood, went on to coach college and Canadian football for many more years.)  
The formation was structured so that the ball could be snapped to the HB, QB, or BB.
The A was extremely effective for the Giants because they were the only team that used it.  Their opponents always had to make special plans to play defense against them.
Here was Owen's theory in his own words:  "I wanted to spread without losing concentrated attacking power, and yet keep the defense scattered along a wide front so that it could not jam in on us at any point.  To do this I deployed my line strong on one side and my backs on the other."
The wing back (Ward Cuff in the earliest games I watched) went in motion before the snap, heading for the space between QB and FB, getting there just as the QB (Charlie Conerly after WWII) spun to make fakes and handoffs.  Cuff made a living from the "spin series," and Charely had some of his best years playing in the A.  As I said in an earlier installment you needed a Mel Hein at center to make the A work.  Once again, the guy was awesome.  I even remember remembering (it seems unlikely that I actually saw it) that on occasion Hein snapped directly to Cuff while he was in motion.
I think if a team ran the A today, because of the A's novelty, it would run through the rest of the league like shit through a goose.  Of course, it couldn't happen.  Who could coach it?  Where could you get four backs (and reserves) who could run it?  How could you resurrect Mel Hein?  
Stout Steve also devised the umbrella defense and was the first coach to platoon.  When you root for the Giants, you're rooting for a team with a rich history.