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The timing could not have been any better with the season about to start.
New York Giants head coach Bill Parcells was in need of a starting-caliber safety, thanks to a back injury that threatened to keep Bill Currier sidelined, and the Los Angeles Raiders had a talented backup they were willing to deal.
On the eve of the 1984 campaign, Kenny Hill got shipped to the Giants for a seventh-round draft choice.
A punishing hitter who played with an edge required of all who wore the Silver-and-Black, Hill commanded immediate respect; not only did he have two Super Bowls rings, but he also majored in Molecular Biophysics and Biochemistry at Yale after turning down offers from several bigger football programs, including LSU.
Hill started the first half of the season while adapting to the Giants' zone scheme (the Raiders played man-to-man defense).
He then suffered an ankle injury that allowed a healthy Currier to re-claim the job.
Ankle issues caused Hill to miss the first month of the following year before he returned to the lineup, where he became an intimidating presence through the 1988 season.
In 1986, Hill ranked fifth on the team with 68 tackles and posted a career-high three interceptions.
He also found himself in the middle of some critical plays during a season that ended with a 39-20 rout over Denver in Super Bowl XXI.
In Week 2, the Giants collected seven turnovers in the 20-7 victory over the high-powered San Diego Chargers.
Hill picked off two passes against Hall of Fame quarterback Dan Fouts, who tied a career-high by throwing five interceptions.
Hill's second takeaway came late in the third quarter with the Chargers down, 10-7, and driving to the New York 31.
He stole a pass intended for Charlie Joiner and returned it 23 yards before the Giants drove for the clinching touchdown.
It was a significant victory because the Chargers had paced the NFL with 29 points per game the previous season and were expected to be a tough test for Parcells' defense.
But the unit was angry after a late failure in the opening loss at Dallas after the team had spent the offseason targeting the Super Bowl following its elimination by Chicago in the 1985 playoffs.
In Week 5, Hill saved a 13-6 win over the St.
Louis Cardinals when he recovered Ottis Anderson's fumble at the Giants 48 with 1:47 remaining.
Hill came up big again in the 49-3 rout over San Francisco in the NFC divisional playoffs, only this time it was early in the first quarter of a scoreless game.
On 2nd-and-10 from the 50, Joe Montana hit an open Jerry Rice, who was streaking toward the goal line; but the receiver dropped the ball at the New York 26 and it caromed into the end zone, where Hill fell on it for a touchback.
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Paul Dottino is an Emmy-award-winning broadcaster who has been a host/reporter on the New York Giants broadcast team since 2009.
He has worked on the New York Giants beat for several electronic and print media outlets since 1983, with various roles at NFL Network, WFAN-AM, ESPN New York, WOR-AM, WNEW-AM, and The (N.J.) Record.
During that time, he also has been a radio play-by-play voice for New York Giants preseason games and a TV play-by-play voice for Division I college football/basketball/baseball games carried by many national and regional cable outlets, including CBS Sports Network, FS1, YES, MSG, ESPN+, and SNY.