Eli Manning contract: "Some talking," but still no deal between Eli, Giants

When a franchise quarterback is up for a new contract, it generally dominates that team's headlines. Not so for the New York Giants.

In the Giants' case all the coverage has been going to Jason Pierre-Paul's injury, the reworked offensive line, and the questions in the secondary. Eli Manning's contract has only been given passing consideration, usually when another quarterback signs a contract extension. Eli Manning went on the Boomer & Carton show on WFAN Tuesday morning and offered a quick update on the status of his contract.

"No, no updates. There's been some talking, but just, you know, my focus is on the Cowboys and getting ready for the season. I'm not gonna make that a distraction at all."

Well then. Perhaps unsurprisingly that answer is about as "Eli" as you can possibly get. But he also added later that he wants to get it done "very quickly", hopefully before the season begins.

"I'm not a big fan of keeping negotiations going during the season. So I'm hoping that if this thing is going to get done, it's going to get done very quickly. I would think both sides would want to do it that way and not have these talks continue on. So hopefully if something is going to get done, it's going to get done quickly."

That, of course, would mean sometime before Sunday night's game against the Dallas Cowboys. This is a deal that everybody agrees that they want to get done, the only question is when.

But as Eli said, his focus is on the Giants' offense and getting ready for the start of the regular season opener against their division rival.

"It's a different mentality when the regular season starts. In training camp you're trying to get better, you're working on things, you're trying to improve. The preseason games you definitely want to get in there and get some live action but, it definitely is a different mentality. You can't help yourself when you get into these regular season games, I thought we were flying around yesterday, a quick practice. Today we're gonna start getting ready, game planning, hit the film, and have a great week of practice. Sunday night in Dallas, you can't beat it to open up the season."

Perhaps the second biggest concern for the Giants has been their offensive line. The line has been jumbled and rebuilt over the offseason, and everyone wants to know how they are coming together.

"Offensive line is good. Schwartz is healthy, everybody is doing well, and I think those guys are ready to go. I feel good about where everybody's playing and the direction we're heading, and they should do a great job."

The state of the Giants offense was a surprising concern, sputtering through most of the preseason. Eli, however, didn't seem concerned.

"Yeah, I think preseason is a time when you're trying to work out some kinks, work on some things, maybe some new plays in preseason games. Things you need to make improvements on or 'hey its a new play we haven't run it against a live defense, or this style' and try to get comfortable. Its not always supposed to be your finished product or your best work. Obviously you want to make improvements through that."