Eli and Peyton Manning both agree that it's easier to deal with the Manning vs. Manning hysteria this time. Mostly because there is less of it.
"Four years ago, we had all the questions all preseason," Peyton Manning said Wednesday via conference call with reporters. "The fact that it's week two, we just get to focus on our first game as I know Eli was, and now I understand it's week two and the questions. The fact is that it's one week, and after this week it'll be over, so I think both of us are pretty relieved as far as when the game was going to be."
Here is Eli's take on the hype.
"I understand that it's a big deal to the media and fans, and that it's a unique story and everything. I think it's definitely been better this year in that it's the second game of the season, and not the opener where you had four months to talk about it," he said. "It's a lot easier dealing with just one week and I think it's a lot more relaxing for Peyton and I just having to deal with it for one week.
"I think in 2006 it was overload because right when people found out we were playing the game in April, we got questions about it. You get sick of answering the same question over and over and over again for five months, and it was just too much. I think with this week, you can handle it because it's been a little bit less stressful for Peyton and I, and we can think about it and enjoy this game and the fact that we both will be on the field on Sunday."
Peyton, by the way, was very complimentary toward little brother -- as you might expect.
"Eli is an experienced NFL quarterback that plays probably in the toughest division in football. He sees tremendously complicated defenses every single week, but always twice a year from Philadelphia, the Redskins, and the Cowboys. He's seen three different (defensive) coordinators on his team the past three years, which every day in practice, he is seeing different looks," Peyton said. "He hasn't missed a start. It'd be hard to find a guy who knows more about defense and is experienced like Eli is because he has been in every single Sunday and he's always ready to play. He takes the cerebral part very seriously, and usually when I call or talk to him, he's studying, so that's what a quarterback's supposed to do in my opinion."