LaTunaNostra
He Made the Difference
- Messages
- 14,985
- Reaction score
- 4
Time For Giants' Manning to step up and lead
by Ian O'Connor
(Original publication: November 26, 2006)
From behind his protective bars, Eli Manning wears the expression of a lost little boy. His face is often a brew of confusion and angst, projecting everything but the one trait required at the most important position in the sport.
Leadership.
When's the last time a middle linebacker glared across the line of scrimmage, surveyed Manning's eyes, and concluded that this was a quarterback in complete command of his fate? Eli never radiates confidence, always inspires doubt.
This is a major concern as the Giants face the music today in Nashville. Manning is the fearful leader of a 6-4 team riding a two-game losing streak and needing a victory to regain a share of first place in the NFC East with their next Meadowlands guest, the Dallas Cowboys.
That's the Bill Parcells Cowboys to you, Mr. Giants Fan in the LT jersey. Yeah you, the one who booed the draft-day hiring of Phil Simms and cheered the draft-day deal for Eli Manning.
The one who would trade Manning and Tom Coughlin for Parcells and Tony Romo in a New York minute.
Tony Romo? The kid wasn't even drafted, and in five career starts he's already shown more life, more moxie, and better aim than Manning, a former No. 1 overall pick, has shown in 33 (34, if you're counting his wretched performance in last season's playoff loss to Carolina). But those unflattering comparisons can wait until next Sunday, when Romo arrives in Jersey with a pulse the home quarterback apparently doesn't have.
For now, Eli Manning of the Giants should be measured against Eli Manning of the Chargers. He was San Diego property, after all, if only for 15 minutes of fame even Andy Warhol wouldn't have wished on him.
That Eli Manning was supposed to develop into a franchise player. Wielding all the clout provided by father Archie and big brother Peyton, Eli bullied the Chargers into trading him to the Giants, who only sent back Philip Rivers and three picks. In effect, Manning did to San Diego what John Elway did to Baltimore.
Only there's a problem with this order of power-play succession: Rivers looks more likely than Manning to someday join Elway in the Hall of Fame.
That's why Coughlin was studying the Chargers' tapes last week, an act of desperation for a coach who knows Manning is the player who will ultimately get him a contract extension, or ultimately get him fired. Coughlin wanted to see what Rivers was doing right so he could grasp the proper context for everything Manning was doing wrong.
No, Ernie Accorsi wasn't doing cartwheels over that public confession. Accorsi had already watched another prospect he rejected in favor of Manning, Ben Roethlisberger, win last year's Super Bowl. He sure didn't need Coughlin suggesting that Rivers held the key to unlocking the Giant's untapped potential.
But Manning's play against the Bears and Jaguars drove his coach to the brink. Passes have been dropped and injuries have been mounting, and yet Manning has no excuse for staging the same kind of second-half fade that stained his first full season as a starter.
He still has in Tiki Barber, Plaxico Burress and Jeremy Shockey a championship-level assembly of playmakers to work with. If Barber has been whining about his number of touches, and if Burress is a perpetual threat to upstage his quarterback with a public show of disgust, Manning's failure to involve Shockey in the offense is the most conspicuous lapse in judgment.
Now Coughlin wants change. In breaking down Manning during the week, the coach sounded very much like a columnist or fan. He admitted being concerned about the quarterback. He said - more or less - that if Manning doesn't play better, the Giants are doomed.
Coughlin said something else: He wants his team to go back to playing with energy. You know, the kind of energy Rivers has given the Chargers and Romo has given the Cowboys.
Only Manning doesn't play with spirit or flair, and he doesn't plan on altering his lifeless approach. "You can't change your personality," he said, "you can't change anything you do. You have to be yourself."
That won't be good enough. Manning doesn't have presence, and a quarterback needs presence more than he needs a clean snap from center.
As much as he's struggled with injuries and arm strength, even Chad Pennington has shown some presence and fire on the other side of the market. He did outscore Peyton Manning, 41-0, in a sudden-death game, and he did give the Jets their first road playoff victory in 22 years.
Will Eli ever bring enough heat to lead the Giants through the bitter January cold? Will he ever understand that he needs to add a page or three of passion to his vanilla playbook?
Eli's body language is that of a hopeless kid brother, his shoulders forever fixed in the slouched position. He often looks like a guy who is attending his first football game and trying to figure it all out.
Manning needs to wipe that expression from his face, and project a little leadership to a group of battered teammates in dire need. The quarterback has put the bust in this Super Bowl-or-bust season. He'd better call an audible and fast.
Ian O'Connor is a sports columnist for The Journal News. He can be reached at ioconnor@lohud.com.
http://www.thejournalnews.com/apps/.../20061126/COLUMNIST03/611260384/1108/SPORTS01
by Ian O'Connor
(Original publication: November 26, 2006)
From behind his protective bars, Eli Manning wears the expression of a lost little boy. His face is often a brew of confusion and angst, projecting everything but the one trait required at the most important position in the sport.
Leadership.
When's the last time a middle linebacker glared across the line of scrimmage, surveyed Manning's eyes, and concluded that this was a quarterback in complete command of his fate? Eli never radiates confidence, always inspires doubt.
This is a major concern as the Giants face the music today in Nashville. Manning is the fearful leader of a 6-4 team riding a two-game losing streak and needing a victory to regain a share of first place in the NFC East with their next Meadowlands guest, the Dallas Cowboys.
That's the Bill Parcells Cowboys to you, Mr. Giants Fan in the LT jersey. Yeah you, the one who booed the draft-day hiring of Phil Simms and cheered the draft-day deal for Eli Manning.
The one who would trade Manning and Tom Coughlin for Parcells and Tony Romo in a New York minute.
Tony Romo? The kid wasn't even drafted, and in five career starts he's already shown more life, more moxie, and better aim than Manning, a former No. 1 overall pick, has shown in 33 (34, if you're counting his wretched performance in last season's playoff loss to Carolina). But those unflattering comparisons can wait until next Sunday, when Romo arrives in Jersey with a pulse the home quarterback apparently doesn't have.
For now, Eli Manning of the Giants should be measured against Eli Manning of the Chargers. He was San Diego property, after all, if only for 15 minutes of fame even Andy Warhol wouldn't have wished on him.
That Eli Manning was supposed to develop into a franchise player. Wielding all the clout provided by father Archie and big brother Peyton, Eli bullied the Chargers into trading him to the Giants, who only sent back Philip Rivers and three picks. In effect, Manning did to San Diego what John Elway did to Baltimore.
Only there's a problem with this order of power-play succession: Rivers looks more likely than Manning to someday join Elway in the Hall of Fame.
That's why Coughlin was studying the Chargers' tapes last week, an act of desperation for a coach who knows Manning is the player who will ultimately get him a contract extension, or ultimately get him fired. Coughlin wanted to see what Rivers was doing right so he could grasp the proper context for everything Manning was doing wrong.
No, Ernie Accorsi wasn't doing cartwheels over that public confession. Accorsi had already watched another prospect he rejected in favor of Manning, Ben Roethlisberger, win last year's Super Bowl. He sure didn't need Coughlin suggesting that Rivers held the key to unlocking the Giant's untapped potential.
But Manning's play against the Bears and Jaguars drove his coach to the brink. Passes have been dropped and injuries have been mounting, and yet Manning has no excuse for staging the same kind of second-half fade that stained his first full season as a starter.
He still has in Tiki Barber, Plaxico Burress and Jeremy Shockey a championship-level assembly of playmakers to work with. If Barber has been whining about his number of touches, and if Burress is a perpetual threat to upstage his quarterback with a public show of disgust, Manning's failure to involve Shockey in the offense is the most conspicuous lapse in judgment.
Now Coughlin wants change. In breaking down Manning during the week, the coach sounded very much like a columnist or fan. He admitted being concerned about the quarterback. He said - more or less - that if Manning doesn't play better, the Giants are doomed.
Coughlin said something else: He wants his team to go back to playing with energy. You know, the kind of energy Rivers has given the Chargers and Romo has given the Cowboys.
Only Manning doesn't play with spirit or flair, and he doesn't plan on altering his lifeless approach. "You can't change your personality," he said, "you can't change anything you do. You have to be yourself."
That won't be good enough. Manning doesn't have presence, and a quarterback needs presence more than he needs a clean snap from center.
As much as he's struggled with injuries and arm strength, even Chad Pennington has shown some presence and fire on the other side of the market. He did outscore Peyton Manning, 41-0, in a sudden-death game, and he did give the Jets their first road playoff victory in 22 years.
Will Eli ever bring enough heat to lead the Giants through the bitter January cold? Will he ever understand that he needs to add a page or three of passion to his vanilla playbook?
Eli's body language is that of a hopeless kid brother, his shoulders forever fixed in the slouched position. He often looks like a guy who is attending his first football game and trying to figure it all out.
Manning needs to wipe that expression from his face, and project a little leadership to a group of battered teammates in dire need. The quarterback has put the bust in this Super Bowl-or-bust season. He'd better call an audible and fast.
Ian O'Connor is a sports columnist for The Journal News. He can be reached at ioconnor@lohud.com.
http://www.thejournalnews.com/apps/.../20061126/COLUMNIST03/611260384/1108/SPORTS01
