Neither Eli Manning, Giants Need to Rush or Panic over Contract Extension

Maybe Eli Manning is being his polite self, or maybe the New York Giants quarterback is smart enough to know that a contract extension this offseason isn't necessarily best for him. After all, Manning is coming off a strong season in a new offense, and the current trajectory indicates he should be even better in his 2015 contract year. 

That might explain why the 34-year-old appears to be completely unconcerned about his status entering the final season of a six-year deal. 

“I guess I'm just happy that I'm still playing and still got a job to do,” Manning said Monday, per Gary Myers of the New York Daily News. “I guess I've always just thought, they gave me a contract for six years, this is the sixth year. I don't have any complaints. I'm going to do my job, no matter what. My focus is on playing good football, winning games, and whatever happens after that happens after that.”

If there's ever a time for a professional athlete to eschew cliches, it's when he's pissed about his contract situation. But Manning knows that 34 is still relatively young in quarterback terms, and the reality is his stock should only grow this year. The risk of entering 2015 without a long-term deal is worth the reward that is likely awaiting him next spring. 

Team	Space	Players
1. Raiders	$69,104,795	36
2. Giants	$58,688,177	46
3. Bucs	$57,589,800	43
4. Chargers	$51,085,203	50
5. Rams	$50,642,674	40

In new offensive coordinator Ben McAdoo's safe, quarterback-friendly system, Manning had the highest completion percentage (63.1) and the third-highest passer rating (92.1) of his career last season. That despite the fact he and his cohorts experienced significant growing pains early.

Quarterback	Comp.%	TD-INT	YPA	Rating
1. Tony Romo	71.7	16-3	8.8	123.1
2. Eli Manning	66.0	12-3	8.2	102.7
3. Russell Wilson	64.0	7-2	9.0	102.4
4. Aaron Rodgers	63.8	10-2	7.9	100.2
5. Drew Brees	68.6	14-7	7.8	98.9

Plus, Manning was without rookie sensation Odell Beckham Jr. for the first four weeks and didn't have Pro Bowler Victor Cruz for the final 10 weeks. A left hamstring injury has sidelined Beckham this offseason, and Cruz is recovering from a torn patellar tendon in his right knee. But according to NFL Media's Kimberly Jones, both are aiming to return for the start of training camp. 

With Manning presumably more comfortable in that McAdoo offense, it's scary to think about how dangerous that unit could be with a healthy Beckham and Cruz, especially as the offensive line continues to get stronger. The line was a weak spot for years but has improved greatly with the addition of recent top-end picks Justin Pugh, Weston Richburg and Ereck Flowers, as well as veterans Geoff Schwartz and John Jerry. 

Manning is of course already one of the league's highest-paid players, with only New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees slated to make a higher base salary in 2015, according to Spotrac. But his stock should only gain value this year. So as a 35-year-old he'll likely be worth at least $20 million a year, and he'd get even more than that if he were to play under the franchise tag. 

Injuries are always a concern, which is why risk does exist here, but Manning isn't taking much of a chance there either. That line should be solid, and he's always been exceptional when it comes to navigating the pocket. McAdoo's offense stresses quick passes, which explains why his sack rate plummeted from 6.6 in 2013 to 4.5 (the third-lowest total of his career) in 2014. It's also important to note that the 11-year veteran has never missed a start because of injury. 

Metric	Total	Rank among 11 seasons
Comp.%	63.1	1st
TD-INT ratio	30-14	1st
Yards/attempt	7.3	5th
Passer rating	92.1	3rd
QBR	70.9	1st
Sack rate	4.5	3rd

So Manning has little reason to jump at a new deal right now and no reason to complain. Meanwhile, the Giants should be OK with the holding pattern. They have the franchise tag in their back pocket, and now that free agency is all but over with, it won't benefit the team very much to free up current salary-cap space by extending Manning's deal. 

There is a decent chance Manning will cost New York more next year than he would right now, but why not make the guy prove it? It's not as though you're screwing him with that $16.25 million salary as is, and Over the Cap currently projects Big Blue to have the league's second-lowest cap number entering the 2016 offseason, with about $59 million to spend.

A team that is typically conservative on the open market can afford to pay Manning whatever it chooses next offseason. 

Right now, nobody's complaining. For good reason. It's a promising time for both Manning and the Giants, who have a window to make at least one more run before this era of Giants football expires. It appears all involved parties know that, which is why contract issues are on the backburner. 

Brad Gagnon has covered the NFL for Bleacher Report since 2012.

Follow @Brad_Gagnon