GIANTS BEAT PANTHERS ON LAST SECOND FUMBLE RETURN FOR TD

The NFL couldn’t have scripted a better ending to their first nationally televised Monday Night Football contest, even if it was just a preseason game.  New York Giants rookie Tommie Hill returned a fumble 18 yards for a touchdown with 0:00 on the clock to break a deadlocked game and give his team a 24-17 victory over the Carolina Panthers in NFL preseason action at The Meadowlands.
 
Carolina’s fourth string QB Hunter Cantwell was in a position where he just had to take a knee and run out the clock on first and 10 from his eighteen yardline.  Instead, he tried to throw a pass only to have his arm hit forcing a fumble.  Hill grabbed the loose ball and headed to the endzone for the shockingly bizarre finish and a Giants’ victory.
 
Amid the jubilation of the Giants’ hometown fans, a mixture of sorrow and jubilation could be heard from NFL bettors around the world.  Carolina bettors who thought they held a winning ticket on the Panthers as +3 road underdogs saw their winnings evaporate in a flash, while Giants’ backers who had already rationalized their loss received an unexpected windfall.  At least the total wasn’t impacted with the last second touchdown, as the 34 combined points had already crept OVER the posted total of 33’.

Tommie Hill was in a state of shock as he spoke about his game winning touchdown return:

"I've never seen a game end like that, not that way. I'm just a rookie trying to make the team. Anything like that that helps the team win in turn helps me. It was just a fortunate situation and I made the most of it."

Hill, an undrafted rookie out of Colorado State had already become a favorite of Giants fans due to his tenacious, high impact playmaking.  His touchdown—the first he’s scored since high school—will only help his efforts to make the NFL roster.

Carolina coach John Fox sounded more bemused than dejected at his team’s unusual loss:

"Kind of an interesting ending. Both sides have a lot of work, but we have time. We have three weeks to do it”

Giants QB Eli Manning, who recently became the NFL’s highest paid player, played only two series.  Still, he put a positive spin on his short night of work:

"We ran the ball really well, hit a couple passes and we got a touchdown. That is always the goal. We did a nice job with it, so I thought we were effective as the first group."

Carolina will travel to Miami for a game next Saturday against the Dolphins.  The Giants will head to Chicago to face Jay Cutler and the Bears.  The Panthers will kick off the NFL regular season hosting the Philadelphia Eagles at home on Sunday, September 13th while the Giants will start their NFL campaign with a big divisional grudge match against the Washington Redskins.