There is another article on this web site about how the Giants win over the Patriots was the game that saved sports.
I saw this article on the main page now for several days. Each time, I chose to ignore it. I knew what it was about, obviously, and figured why subject myself to the pain I would have to feel all over again reading about how my favorite football team lost its chance at immortality to the Giants.
But finally, today, I decided to read it. Very well written and even a Patriot fan must admit, a lot of it was very true.
There is one part, however, of the Giants story that maybe isn't so storybook and maybe it detracts from this great feeling everyone outside of New England has.
That is Eli Manning.
I'm not talking about whether or not Eli deserved the MVP or that in the Giants final drive he made about five plays that easily could have lost his team the game. I really am not because all that doesn't matter.
Eli made the plays when they had to be made and his team won. One thing I learned from watching the Patriots from 2001-2004 is that it doesn't matter how you win, just that you win.
No, I am talking about Eli Manning, the man who in 2004 was possibly going to be the No. 1 draft pick by the San Diego Chargers. Eli was unhappy though. With a lot of help from his father, Eli made it known he did not want to go to San Diego.
By now we all know that Eli got his way. After having their hands tied by the Mannings' public demands, San Diego acquiesced to Eli's wishes and traded him to New York.
I never really understood why Eli was against going to San Diego. Yes, the team had gone 4-12 the previous season, (after going 8-8 in 2002) but this wasn't a franchise in disarray. They had a great young running back who in his first three years in the league rushed for over 4500 yards and 37 touchdowns.
Surely that had to be attractive to a quarterback entering the league.
Yes the Chargers had Drew Brees and maybe Eli didn't want the competition. He may have preferred a situation where upon being drafted he would be anointed their quarterback.
Did Eli want to be in the big market to maximize his exposure? That never made sense to me.
If anything can be learned from Peyton Manning it is that if you perform well in the NFL the marketing aspect takes care of itself. Indianapolis isn't exactly a huge market. Even if Eli wasn't spectacular in San Diego, with his last name, the marketing opportunities would have been there for him.
My theory is that one of the reasons Archie Manning pulled the strings to get Eli to New York is that he has hopes of one day seeing a Manning bowl—Peyton and the Colts against Eli and Giants in the Super Bowl. Even if true, is that terrible?
No, I can understand a little, but is it enough of a reason to disrespect the game the way Eli did by refusing to go to a team if they had the audacity to make him the number one pick in the draft?
Regardless of the reason, it happened and Eli wound up getting what he wanted which was a trade to New York. Prior to the 2007 postseason things never really went well for Eli with the Giants. He had his moments, but even this season his team went 3-5 at home compared with 7-1 on the road.
Many thought a major reason for the discrepancy was that Eli played better away from the New York fans who let him hear it every time he fumbled a snap, overthrew a receiver, or threw an interception. Maybe this was karma for Eli forcing his way to New York.
But then he wins the Super Bowl and is named MVP, and it quickly is forgotten how Eli forced his way to New York.
It all worked out for him. Eli's antics from 2004 never seem to get mentioned anywhere. Swept under the rug. But of course, fake mooning the crowd after scoring a touchdown is the type of thing that will follow an athlete forever.
Eli certainly was not the first player to make pre-draft demands until he got his way and he certainly will not be the last. It still does not make it right and it is not conduct that should ever be applauded or emulated.
The message I fear, however, has already been sent—if you are going to be a high draft pick, especially at quarterback, and you think you might end up on a team you don't want to play for, simply tell the team "I won't play for you." Then pick the team and the city where you want to play and don't back down.
Get your way because Eli Manning did it and it all worked out for him. He is a Super Bowl MVP.
Sports is a business and I know that. But to me, and I honestly felt this way at the time when Manning pulled this stunt, there is something wrong when someone is going to get the chance to become a professional athlete and they act like Eli did.
Especially a top pick with a chance to fulfill a lifelong dream who instead of enjoying the moment and realizing how lucky he is to be in that position, forgets all that and makes an Eli Manning-type demand.
The 2007 New York Giants are unquestionably a great story. How they got their quarterback, however, is not.
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