All-Time Giants QBs Ranked: Manning #1, Simms #2

Gary Wood

#19 · New York Giants
Retired 5 Years In The NFL
🏆 CFL Eastern All-Star (1970)
Gary's
HAIR
7.3
HeyTC AI Rating

Questions about Gary Wood or the Giants?

Gary Wood Legacy

HEYTC AI
Gary Wood was the scrappy Cornell gunslinger from tiny Taylor, New York, a 5'11" dynamo who shredded Ivy League defenses like tissue paper, setting records for total offense and rushing that stood as monuments to his dual-threat wizardry. What made him special? That fearless mobility, turning broken plays into highlights and earning All-American nods before backing up NFL giants in New York and New Orleans, then lighting up the CFL as an Eastern All-Star. A late-round gem who played with Ivy moxie in pro trenches, Wood left the gridiron having proven small-school kids could hang. He passed away in 1994 at 52.
Gary Wood passed away on March 3, 1994 at the age of 52.

Gary Wood Rating Breakdown

Season
Non-Factor
Fantasy
Subpar
Playoffs
Non-Factor
Overall
Cooked
5 years with the Giants

Gary Wood Career Stats via Wikipedia

2,575 Pass Yards
14 Touchdowns
23 INTs
0.0% Comp %
7.3 HAIR

Frequently Asked Questions About Gary Wood

How does Jaxson Dart compare to Gary Wood?

Jaxson Dart's got the arm and wheels to build something real as the Giants' starter, but Gary Wood's Cornell days—leading the nation in all-purpose yards in '62 with 1,395, outrushing everybody as an Ivy League comet—set a bar of pure dual-threat chaos that Dart's still chasing in this pass-happy era. Wood backed up Tittle and Tarkenton, scraping 2,575 NFL yards; Dart needs those comeback genes to match that grit.

Is Gary Wood in the Pro Football Hall of Fame?

Nah, Gary Wood never made it to Canton—no bust waiting for the old Giants backup who slung 2,575 yards and 14 TDs over six seasons, mostly holding clipboards behind Y.A. Tittle and Fran Tarkenton. Solid journeyman with a 54.5 rating, but the Hall's for the immortals, not the Ivy League flash who couldn't quite stick as The Guy.

How would Gary Wood perform in today's NFL?

Wood's legs would feast under today's rules—no more muggings on QBs, protections galore—and his Cornell rushing explosion (818 yards as a senior!) screams gadget weapon in a Shanahan tree. That 46.5% completion? Arm talent was there (7.33 rating peak), but he'd need quick-release tweaks to survive blitzes; think a '60s Lamar prototype, feisty but raw.

How does Gary Wood compare to Eli Manning?

Eli Manning owned the Giants' throne with two Super Bowl chokes of Brady and a 59.81 rating over 235 games; Wood, the '64 backup spark, mustered a measly 7.33 in spot duty behind HOFers, all 2,575 yards in six years. Eli's the ice-veined closer; Wood's the scrappy Cornell rusher who dreamed big but stayed a what-if in Big Blue lore.