Eli Manning Report Card: How Did the New York Giants QB Do in Wild-Card Win?

Eli Manning led the New York Giants in a 24-2 triumph over the Atlanta Falcons for the Giants’ first playoff victory at the New Meadowlands.

Manning was near-perfect completing 23-of-32 passes for 277 yards and three touchdowns, including two big touchdown passes to the Giants’ third-year stud receiver from North Carolina, Hakeem Nicks.

Manning’s contributions were extensive in the Giants’ first home win since their Super Bowl in 2000. His offensive prowess led a passing attack that tallied 21 of the Giants’ 24 points. But was Manning successful in all facets of the game?

Here’s how the Giants quarterback graded in his Wild Card Round performance against the Atlanta Falcons.

Accuracy

Despite a slow start out of the gates for the New York Giants, it had little to do with Eli Manning’s ability to throw accurate passes against the Atlanta Falcons defense.

Manning completed 71.9 percent of 32 pass attempts, highlighted by a perfectly placed touchdown pass to Hakeem Nicks in the first half where only the 6'1''' receiver could get it. He also connected with Nicks on a perfect drag across the middle, splitting the defenders and delivering an opportunity for Nicks to scorch the Falcons secondary for a 72-yard touchdown.

Manning showed great accuracy on most of his passes throughout the afternoon, enabling his receivers the chance to fight for some extra yards.

With a few exceptions, Manning was great under all sorts of pressure and threw a strike whether he was sitting comfortably in the pocket or on the run.

Grade: A+

Ball Security

Eli Manning took a big leap this season because he was able to avoid turning the ball over better than ever before in his eight-year career with the New York Giants. In the Giants’ 24-2 win against the Atlanta Falcons, Manning did a fantastic job keeping the ball in the hands of the Giants offense.

Manning’s performance against the Falcons was his second consecutive game of the season without throwing an interception—he had thrown an interception in eight straight games leading up to the Giants’ Week 17 meeting with the Dallas Cowboys.

In order for the Giants to continue to advance in the NFL playoffs, Manning must be careful with the ball. Though they performed well in the win over the Falcons, the Giants defense is questionable at best. The Giants are safest with the ball in Manning’s hands in these big games.

Grade: A+

Pocket Presence

Eli Manning is one of the best pocket passers in the NFL today. He proved that to be true once again in his play against the Atlanta Falcons and their vicious pass rush.

With consistent pressure in his face, Manning handled it well, finding little trouble guiding the Giants to an important win at home. When facing five or more pass-rushers, Manning completed 7-of-9 passes, including two touchdown passes to Hakeem Nicks.

What’s even more impressive was Manning’s presence in the pocket to know when to escape it.

On two occasions, Manning converted two first downs for the Giants not through the air, but by tucking the ball in and taking off for the first down maker. The first of which—a 14-yard scramble—resulted in a Giants touchdown.

Grade: A

Leadership

In the New York Giants’ most convincing win of the season, the Giants team appeared as prepared and focused and as much like a team as they ever have.

Credit their captain, Eli Manning, for some of that.

Through 16 regular season games, Manning never allowed his teammates to quit. In their 17th game of the season, the Giants looked ready to make a run towards the Super Bowl, trusting in their quarterback to lead them there.

Manning’s cool demeanor and ability to shake off troublesome issues and costly mistakes was reflected in his teammates who, despite early struggles on offense, kept playing hard and fighting for a victory. His leadership could go a long way in the NFL playoffs and the Giants' surge towards Super Bowl XLVI in Indianapolis.

Grade: A

Decision-Making

Eli Manning has this innate ability to stay poised in the pocket as a play develops. Manning’s career-year in 2011 was highlighted by unparalleled decision-making.

Manning’s decision-making against the Atlanta Falcons was as perfect as the New York Giants could have asked for. He completed 71.9 percent of his passes and did not throw a single interception.

The only mark on his decision-making is a questionable safety due to an intentional grounding call that gave the Falcons their only points of the afternoon. While the blame may lie on Manning’s shoulders, he was going to get called for a safety one way or another—either by taking the sack or from the intentional grounding call forced by the oncoming pass rush and nowhere to run.

Still, the Giants can’t complain about what they got from their Pro Bowl quarterback. His excellent play against the Falcons has him lined up for a showdown at Lambeau Field against the Green Bay Packers and an exciting opportunity to upset the NFL’s top team.

Grade: A-

Final Grade

In the New York Giants’ toughest game to date, Eli Manning stepped up and handled it like an elite quarterback should.

He guided his teammates to a playoff win over a team that many were picking to beat them and did so quite handily.

Manning’s 277 passing yards, three touchdowns and passer rating of 129.3 are hard to match. The quarterback just continues to deliver for the Giants when they need him most.

With a divisional round matchup with the NFL-best Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field, the Giants might be the team with the greatest opportunity to pull off the upset.

After an impressive win against the Falcons, the Giants can certainly compete for a trip to Indianapolis and Super Bowl XLVI. If Manning’s performance on Sunday afternoon was any indication, the Giants are headed in the right direction.

Grade: A