East Rutherford, NJ – A week before the New York Giants officially begin their quest toward a possible repeat, they had one final preseason tuneup against the Tom Brady-less New England Patriots in a rematch of Super Bowl XLVI.
It didn't have the drama of the title game, but the Giants prevailed late once again.
Eli Manning played into the second quarter and completed 4-of-8 passes for 29 yards and Lawrence Tynes nailed a 32-yard field goal with 1:03 left as the Giants downed the Patriots, 6-3, on Wednesday.
Hakeem Nicks made his preseason debut, but caught just one pass for six yards. He fractured his right foot in May.
The Giants kick off the NFL season next Wednesday at home against the Dallas Cowboys.
Jeff Demps had six rushes for 15 yards and added three receptions for 31 yards for New England, which rested nearly every starter.
The Patriots will commence the year on the road against the Tennessee Titans on Sept. 9.
Stephen Gostkowski kicked a 20-yard field goal in the second quarter for the opening half's only points.
New York, which totaled just 69 yards of offense in the first 30 minutes, used a 13-play, 64-yard march to tie the game on its first series of the third quarter. Tynes tied the contest with a 34-yard field goal to cap the drive.
Adewale Ojomo sacked and stripped Brian Hoyer before Marcus Thomas recovered the ball and returned it for 12 yards to the New England 20 with 2:27 to play, which led to Tynes' go-ahead boot.
Laron Scott intercepted Hoyer with 13 seconds remaining to seal the win.