Good morning, New York Giants fans! It seems everyone has an opinion on the futures of quarterback Eli Manning and coach Tom Coughlin, so that it the focus of today's Giants Morning Report.
Tony Romo: Manning Gives Giants A Chance
Tony Romo and Eli Manning will face off for the 15th time on Sunday. What does the Dallas quarterback think of Manning?
"He really gives that football team a really good chance when not everything is going perfect. He still allows them to compete game in and game out and have a chance. Ultimately that it what you are asking is that the pieces around you some years are better than others, but he has been a constant, and I think it shows over the years," Romo said.
Rich Gannon Weighs In On Manning
Former NFL quarterback turned analyst Rich Gannon didn't pull any punches Wednesday when Mike Francesa of WFAN asked him about Manning:
"I don't really see a player that's any better (than he was in 2013). He threw five interceptions last week. It's the type of interceptions that really concern me. Not seeing a zoning linebacker, throwing late down the middle. Some really bad decisions. That tells me there's something going on there. He's not comfortable, he's not really understanding why they're calling plays in certain situations.
"I'd be really, really concerned if I were the Giants with what Eli Manning has done over the last 24 months."
Giants have holes, but franchise quarterback isn’t one of them | New York Post
Steve Serby weighs in on Manning:
The critical questions ownership and management need to ask themselves about Manning are these:
Do we trust him?
Can we win with him?
And both questions should and will again be answered in the affirmative. They can trust him, because whenever there is a game to play, Manning plays in it. They can win with him, because he only will get better in the West Coast offense, and they can win with him as long as the Giants get him some lionhearted offensive linemen so he doesn’t have to carry the team on his back every week.
Ryan Nassib: Eli Manning bounces back quickly - Newsday
"The one thing I notice about Eli is good game or bad game, he comes to work the same every week," said Nassib, Manning's backup quarterback and the teammate who spends the most time with him during the week of preparations. "You don't see him down on himself. You can see why he could, but he doesn't. He comes in and works just as hard in good times and bad. That comes from the type of player he is and the type of man he is.
"The way you see him on Mondays, he could have thrown for five touchdowns or thrown five picks," Nassib added. "That's one of his best qualities."
When it's not about Eli, it's about Coughlin
Appearing on the Michael Kay Show, running back Rashad Jennings disputed the notion that Tom Coughlin is losing the locker room:
"He's a leader. He always captures the attention of the room. Great respect, and we all want to fight for him, so that's something that shouldn't even be raised as a question," Jennings said.
Manning agreed with Jennings:
"Coach, he's doing a great job. He gets us ready, we've just got to perform better. But it's not a lack of effort, guys are practicing hard, guys want to do well. Guys are into it, they're in tune, they're excited about the week and doing all the right things in the preparation," Manning said. "We've got to just keep doing the right things and take it into game day and do everything the way it needs to be done. Pay attention to all the little details and can't have those little mistakes that are costing us big plays."
Johnette Howard of ESPN New York believes Coughlin should return to the Giants next season, if he wants to:
Keeping Coughlin for one last make-or-break season wouldn't be a sign of weakness as much as a concession to reality: The roster just ain't that great.
One of the hardest things to do in the NFL is remain patient. Old-school teams like the Giants and Steelers are demonstrably better at it than most.
Injured cornerback Walter Thurmond, on a one-year deal, says he is open to the possibility of returning to the Giants next season.