Giants Q&A: There's a chance Eli Manning keeps playing this year
Eli Manning of the Giants celebrates after throwing a touchdown pass during the second quarter against the Dolphins at MetLife Stadium on Dec. 15, 2019. Credit: Jim McIsaac
So this is how it ends for Eli Manning?
Not so fast.
Coach Pat Shurmur said that Daniel Jones, whose high ankle sprain has necessitated these two starts by Manning, is “trying to come back from injury and who knows where he’s going to be . . . I don’t know how much better he is going to be.”
Jones was able to practice this past week, and there is every indication that he’ll be healthier and ready to go when the Giants play at Washington on Sunday, but Shurmur would not commit to that.
“There’s a chance that Eli keeps playing,” he said.
Wouldn’t that be weird after all of the emotion and hoopla on Sunday?
Probably. It’s hard to imagine a better cap to Manning’s career with the Giants. Even Manning figures that Jones will be back for the final two regular-season games.
“Of course I’d like to [play],” Manning said. “I know Daniel’s getting close to getting ready and getting better. We’ll see what his status is. I get it either way. I know they want to get him back and get him more experience and more reps and everything.”
Anything Manning still wants to accomplish?
A family photo would be nice. He tried to get one on Sunday with his wife, three daughters and son on the field after the game, but that plan was scuttled by the swarm of media.
“I thought we could do it kind of quietly and low-key,” he joked. “Obviously, that wasn’t quite the case.”
Manning took a similar picture last year, but his son Charlie was born in February, so Manning wants to try to get one of everyone at the last home game on Dec. 29. “It’ll still be a good one to have,” he said.
How will the Giants react if Manning starts again?
“Let’s get him another one,” safety Michael Thomas said.
And if he wins the last two to go out with three in a row?
Joked Thomas, “See you next year!”
How does this win affect the Giants’ draft status?
That’s the beauty of it. It doesn’t. The Giants (3-11) remain in control of the second overall pick behind the Bengals (1-13) despite the 36-20 win over the Dolphins (3-11). Because tiebreakers in draft order are determined by strength of schedule and not head-to-head matchups, the Giants still are ahead of Miami in the draft order.
Next week’s game against the Redskins (3-11), will have much more impact on the Giants’ ranking. And considering both drafted a quarterback with a first-round pick in this year’s draft, the loser on Sunday might wind up the big winner in April.
What did Sam Beal see on his tackle of Patrick Laird for a safety?
The first-year cornerback had outside containment on the running play.
“I attacked him,” Beal said. “It looked [like] he didn’t want to come out [of the end zone]. I was like, ‘What are you doing?’ I didn’t think he knew how fast I was. But as soon as I saw him, I just shot through.”
Tom Rock began covering sports for Newsday in 1996 and became its NFL columnist in 2022. He previously was Newsday's Giants beat writer beginning in 2008.
