Eli Manning showing everyone he's in Brady's class

By Tom Canavan

Associated Press

Published: Wednesday, Nov. 2 2011 5:45 p.m. MDT

New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning (10) gives direction during the second quarter of an NFL football game against the Miami Dolphins Sunday, Oct. 30, 2011 in East Rutherford, N.J. The Giants won 20-17.

Bill Kostroun, Associated Press


Manning had only won one Super Bowl compared to Brady's three, and the New York Giants were entering this season after missing the playoffs a very un-Brady-like two straight years.

There seemed to be no comparison.

Closing in on the midpoint of the season, Manning is right there with Brady in the NFL statistics as the Giants (5-2) get ready to take a trip to New England to play the Patriots (5-2) in the teams' first regular-season game since they meet in the Super Bowl in February 2008.

Brady is the league's second-leading passer behind Aaron Rodgers of Green Bay. Manning is third.


"Well, the question was if I thought I was an elite quarterback and basically, I was just saying that I did," Manning said when asked of his Brady comparison. "I'm usually not into the business of ranking and rating quarterbacks and comparing myself to other guys. Looking back, I thought I gave an honest answer, and I don't regret anything."

Teammates don't downplay how much Manning means to them.

"There is so much he does that he doesn't get credit for," Giants guard David Diehl said. "He doesn't get the recognition he deserves. For us. It's something that we see. It's the way that he works, the way he prepares either out on the field or breaking down film or getting with the wide receivers or checking and making alerts and audibles at the line of scrimmage. He's just playing great football for us."

Talk to any of the members of the Giants' offense, and there is no doubt Manning is their leader.

That has never been truer than this season. Four of the team's five wins have come in the fourth quarter, which is when the 30-year-old has played his best. In fact, his fourth-quarter numbers rank No. 1 in the league.

Manning has hit 49 of 70 passes for 710 yards and six touchdowns, averaging 10.14 yards per attempt. He has only thrown two interceptions in the quarter with both coming in a loss to Seattle. The first tipped off the hands of Giants' receiver Victor Cruz at the Seahawks 5 yard line and was returned for a touchdown and the other was a last-second heave with the game already decided.


"I am just trying to be smart," Manning said. "Our team hasn't been in situations where we're down by multiple touchdowns late in the game and you are trying to force things. I have worked hard on my accuracy, making sure the ball is where it needs to be. The receivers have done a good job of getting open and being in the right spot.

"The linemen are protecting well where I don't have to throw it before I'm ready or while getting hit. Tipped balls are hitting the ground and not going into other people's arms. A lot of things come into that, but I am making good decisions, making my reads and putting the ball where it needs to be."

Manning isn't the most athletic of quarterbacks. He is not going to elude a big rush — the Patriots might have nightmares about that — or scramble for a first down or even throw on the run much. His arm isn't rifle-like, although the touch he puts on the ball is very good.


"I have just tried to continue to learn and understand our offense," said Manning, who will be making his 111th consecutive start. "I've been in the same offense since (the Super Bowl). I tried to grow and understand defenses and schemes. We have a lot of players on this offense who weren't in that game, so I have grown with these receivers and players the last three years. That game doesn't come into that much thought this week. (I'm) getting ready for this defense. They are doing different things. I just expect to go in there and play well."




"He studies a ton of film," Hixon said. "To me, his football intelligence is probably the best in the league. Like I said it's paying off. He's working all the time, on and off the field. Even on the days that I am here doing physical therapy, he's watching film. To me that's what it takes to be where he is at now."

For Manning, the here and now isn't thinking about Super Bowl XLII. It's getting ready for the Patriots again.

"These games are fun, when you play against good teams," Manning said. "When you think of the Patriots, you always think of a team that is always in the playoff picture, always a talented, well-coached team. These are easy games to get excited for. You just want to go in there and play the style of football we know we can play."

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