Giants By The Numbers: 22 is for ...

by Ed Valentine on May 18, 2010 11:01 AM EDT in New York Giants By The Numbers

Dick Lynch.

As a player, Lynch was a Giant -- and a very good one -- for the last eight of his nine professional seasons from 1959-66. A cornerback, he intercepted 35 passes as a Giant. Twice, he intercepted nine passes in a single season. In 1963, Lynch was an All-Pro, with nine interceptions and three returns for touchdowns.

Many Giants' fans, though, only know Lynch as the excitable, wear his Giants-loving heart on his sleeve guy who provided color commentary on Giants radio broadcasts for four decades, from 1967 to 2008. The final game Lynch ever worked was the Giants' Super Bowl victory over New England.

If you want to know more about Lynch, here is a great story from the New York Daily News written a few months before Lynch's death from Luekemia.

Others who have worn 22 include:

Rocky Thompson, 1971-73. A running back and No. 1 pick, his futility symbolized the failures of that decade for the Giants.
Phillippi Sparks, 1992-99. A solid cornerback for eight seasons.

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Lynch was the Bobbiblue,

the funny prankster, of the men in blue. He called Robustelli (the leader of the great Ds of the Glory Days) the “Pope”. He’d genuflect and try to kiss andy’s imaginary ring.

by blue gonz on May 18, 2010 11:18 AM EDT reply actions

LOL..I can't argue this pick..Lynch was a warrior..and a funny sob that kept the team together..

..No argument with this pick..

"When I was a boy and had no sense I got my pecker stuck in an electric fence..Well it curled my hair and tickled my balls, and made me shit in my overalls"

by Bobbiblue on May 18, 2010 2:03 PM EDT up reply actions

A Gentleman

Dick Lynch was a true gentleman, quality player, quality human. He was an excellent defensive back, underrated most of his career ( except ‘63), and, of course, he’s the player who scored the lone touchdown when Notre Dame stopped Oklahoma’s 47 game win streak in 1957.

I noticed that most of the comments after these three were about other people ( other players )

Shame, Mr. Lynch deserves more response.

by grange77 on May 18, 2010 4:51 PM EDT up reply actions

Lee Rouson also wore #22

by Nuno on May 18, 2010 11:59 AM EDT reply actions

Yes

But Rouson was never more than a backup running back. He was basically the DJ Ware of his time.

by Ed Valentine on May 18, 2010 12:29 PM EDT up reply actions

+1....

Ed, Lee Rouson deserves at least a nod….

he definitely contributed more than DJ Ware has thus far in his career….granted he’s a backup, but he did contribute on special teams and in the slot too….

good call, Nuno.

"Throw the damn ball to Kevin Boss" - Andiamo708

by andiamo708 on May 18, 2010 12:43 PM EDT up reply actions

Not saying much

regarding Ware, I think Jim Sorgi has contributed as much, hasn’t even played yet.
If Andre Brown proved to be healtyh, Ware is probably not going to be here.
No brainer for #22., though I barely remember him as a player.

Stay thirsty my friends.

by Great Gatsby on May 18, 2010 12:58 PM EDT up reply actions

ok...by no means am i saying Rouson should win the number....

that would be totally asinine….

but if Rocky Thompson gets a nod i think it’s fair Rouson should get one as well….

that’s all….

"Throw the damn ball to Kevin Boss" - Andiamo708

by andiamo708 on May 18, 2010 1:25 PM EDT up reply actions

Rocky got a nod?

i’d call it a knock.

by blue gonz on May 18, 2010 1:35 PM EDT up reply actions

lol...his name got mentioned....

clearly not in a good way….

I just think it’s cool to name as many players as possible….good or bad….i mean why not?!?!

sometimes that’s the best part about these posts….we have such a rich history that the #2 guy or even #3 guy could still be cherished by fans.

Hell I loved Phil McConkey…but he ain’t the greatest giants to wear #80….heck didn’t we cut him? either way….these guys should at least get their name mentioned….BBV is big time now….we owe it to them. they’re probably reading….

"Throw the damn ball to Kevin Boss" - Andiamo708

by andiamo708 on May 18, 2010 1:46 PM EDT up reply actions

I don't know why i'm saying "we" like Ed and I are partners or something....

LOL….

ed you do a great job here, don’t mind me….

"Throw the damn ball to Kevin Boss" - Andiamo708

by andiamo708 on May 18, 2010 1:48 PM EDT up reply actions

Rocky

had great hands, don’t you remember?

Stay thirsty my friends.

by Great Gatsby on May 18, 2010 3:39 PM EDT up reply actions

I knew about Rouson

And I remember him. But really didn’t think he deserved consideration. In a six-year Giants career he gained 401 yards rushing with a high of 179. He returned 22 kicks in 1987, but only 35 total as a Giant. So, really, he did not contribute much at all.

by Ed Valentine on May 18, 2010 1:22 PM EDT up reply actions

true....

those numbers are pretty pathetic….

almost as pathetic as Rocky Thompson’s…..LOL.

"Throw the damn ball to Kevin Boss" - Andiamo708

by andiamo708 on May 18, 2010 1:32 PM EDT up reply actions

+2

Rouson was a Parcells workhorse. That says something

by StubsNY on May 18, 2010 2:40 PM EDT up reply actions

Lynch is the right choice...

Though I believe Nuno is correct about Rouson and Sparks was a decent contributor. Lynch is the only guy with #22 who had periods of exceptional play and a decent length career with the Giants that was well above average.

by Cranky50 on May 18, 2010 12:18 PM EDT reply actions

It was tough for Lynch to get much attention, what with

3 othe rterrific DBs on the squad (Barnes, Nolan, Patton.) That was probably the best defensive backfield ever for the Giants.

by blue gonz on May 18, 2010 12:42 PM EDT reply actions

2390 all-purpose yards, two Super Bowl rings, Lee Rouson

Let’s keep track and see if Danny Ware can beat that. I would be happy if he did. I think in this era where most teams have moved away from work horse running backs, he might have done a lot better, If we had been forced to lean on him more, I always felt that he would have done fine. But blue gonz is right, Barnes, Nolan, Patton, Lynch, an embarrassment of riches. Definitely Lynch’s number. Rocky Thompson, he made me really nervous that we would take CJ Spiller,

by Spider Lockhart on May 18, 2010 1:06 PM EDT reply actions

Yeah, I think Eed mentioned Rocky

becuse most rememember him:
He was a virtually unknown #1 pick
Perhaps the worst ever by the Giants.

by blue gonz on May 18, 2010 1:39 PM EDT up reply actions

But Rocky had great hair

When Rocky took off his helmet his hair would expand to double the size of the helmet.. Looked a bit like a dandelion gone to seed. It was quite fashionable at the time.

by Spider Lockhart on May 18, 2010 7:57 PM EDT up reply actions

When I think back

The early 90’s are my first memories of being a Giants fan, I mean I was a Giants fan since birth in ’85 but I only have memories back to the early 90s and Phillippi Sparks was one of my favorite players.

by Squali21 on May 18, 2010 1:07 PM EDT reply actions

i wld give sparks a brief look..!

I’m good with this 1 -As long as 25 isn’t butch woolfolk I’m happy…even if his mom was my 3rd grade teacher

Regroup refocus..retool...

by Mr.Williams on May 18, 2010 1:34 PM EDT via mobile reply actions

Butch Woolfolk?

We’ve had lousy results with Michigan RBs, haven’t we?

by blue gonz on May 18, 2010 2:07 PM EDT reply actions

almost as bad as Wisconsin RB's.

Just keep winning

by FreeBradshaw on May 18, 2010 4:14 PM EDT up reply actions

We haven't had as many.

Have we? I was almost going to say Big Ten RBs.

by blue gonz on May 18, 2010 4:50 PM EDT reply actions

yea, just stay away from them

Just keep winning

by FreeBradshaw on May 18, 2010 6:33 PM EDT up reply actions

phillippis' daughter

has a set of pipes. wow. can she sing.

by jerseybillfromva on May 18, 2010 5:27 PM EDT reply actions

My favorite Ed Lynch story

My favorite story was the practical joke he played on his then fiance and her family. He hadn’t met the in-laws yet, and they were all to meet him after watching a Giants game. So he switched jerseys with Erich Barnes, a black defensive back on the team. He knew they’d look for him by his jersey number. So Erich trots out wearing #22 and waves and smiles up to the family while Dick, wearing Erich’s jersey, enjoys the confused looks on his in-law’s faces.
I loved listening to Dick Lynch call the games on the radio. I actually used to tape the games on a little cassette player for a couple of years. I kept them for years, but I’ll be damned if I know what happened to them now.
Just a quality person through and through. I really felt bad for the guy when he lost his son at the WTC bombing. You could tell how much he meant to him, because Ed always wore his heart on his sleeve.
It’s nice to remember a great man like Dick Lynch, a true Giant legend as a quality person in my estimation.

by ronjohnson on May 18, 2010 5:38 PM EDT reply actions