FOX came a sweaty 12 minutes short Sunday of an agonizing decision: either anger football fans – or the rest of the country.

But when the New York Giants kicked a field goal 12 minutes before the scheduled start of the Emmy Awards ceremony, Fox executives heaved a sigh of relief.

The Giants’ game with the Washington Redskins had gone into sudden-death overtime, pre-empting all but the final few minutes of the Emmy pre-show.

Fox executives talked about what they would do if the game stretched past the 8 p.m. start time for the Emmys, but a network spokesman would not reveal if a decision had been made. The field goal made the discussion moot.