Eli Manning: More important for Giants to play smart than go for big plays

Jerry Reese may want Eli Manning to be more aggressive, but Manning doesn't sound like he's going to be changing his philosophy anytime soon.

"Well, I think it's important for us just to play smart football and find completions," Manning said on a conference call with the Indianapolis media on Wednesday. "If there are opportunities to take some shots down the field and hit some shots down the field, it'd be nice to hit some big plays. We still have to find completions."

On Monday, Reese said he thought the offense was "almost too cautious" and while Manning's interceptions have plummeted this season, so have the big plays. "You have to throw the ball down the field and you have to score points in this league to win," Reese said.

While Manning has a 96.8 passer rating,the 10th-best among regular quarterbacks in the league, the Giants are ranked 24th in passing offense. Manning has completed just two passes this season in which the ball traveled 20 or more yards.

"Some of that's just hitting guys in stride and having a little bit better first down and second down production so you can get into some situations to take some shots," Manning said. "We've just got to keep finding ways to make some plays." Giants talk abuse

On Monday the Giants were one of the first two NFL teams to participate in an educational session about domestic violence, sexual assault and child abuse. "I definitely think it was a good [program] in light of all the things that have happened," defensive end Mathias Kiwanuka said. "[With] everything that has been brought to the public eye, I think it is good that the league is taking the initiative. We, as a league, want to be at the forefront of opening up the floor for discussion. It is something that we needed to hear. . . . "

Giant steps

CB Mike Harris was signed from the Lions practice squad to replace LB Jon Beason, who was put on injured reserve after season-ending surgery on his toe Wednesday morning. . . . The Giants have played 58 times on Monday Night Football since 1970, but the Colts game will only be their 17th time as the home team. For Eli Manning, it will be just his third. "I really haven't played many Monday night games at home for whatever reason," said Manning, who is 2-0 in such situations with wins over the Rams in 2011 and the Vikings last year. "It'll be good to have a Monday night game in our stadium and have the home crowd. It should be a great atmosphere."

By Tom Rock

tom.rock@newsday.com@TomRock_Newsday

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.