Why Eli Manning No Longer Lives in Older Brother Peyton's Shadow

New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning has been long thought to simply be Peyton's less remarkable younger brother and little more.

Even when he led his team to a Super Bowl victory in 2007, he still wasn't held in as high regard as his brother, who is a guaranteed future Hall of Famer and one of the all-time greats to ever play the quarterback position.

However, this season the younger Manning has proven that he's far more than just Peyton's little brother and has become an elite quarterback in his own right.

In 2011, Manning completed 359 of his 589 passing attempts—the most of his career—for 4,933 yards, 29 touchdowns and 16 interceptions. He's led six game winning drives this season and engineered five fourth-quarter comebacks in 2011 and is the primary reason that the Giants have made it this far in the playoffs.

Earlier this season, Manning tried to include himself in the list of the year's elite quarterbacks and was laughed at for doing so.

But now, having out-thrown Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers last week and knocking out the Super Bowl favorites from the playoffs, there's little question that he deserves to be on the list of the greatest quarterbacks playing right now.

With Eli as the full-time starter, the Giants have missed the playoffs only twice, in 2009 and 2010, and the team hasn't had a losing season with him as their quarterback.

He's just one win away from taking the Giants to the Super Bowl for the second time in his tenure, and if they manage to not only get there but to win it, he'll have eclipsed his older brother, who has two Super Bowl appearances of his own, but just one victory.

Eli hasn't had the career that Peyton has. He wasn't a heralded draft prospect, and he was a bit shaky upon being named the team's full-time starter. He's not flashy—though he's part of a team in the largest media market in the nation, he was eclipsed by the constant attention given to Rodgers, Drew Brees, Tom Brady and of course, Tim Tebow this season.

However Eli is one thing, without question—a winner. It's easy to discuss Eli without even thinking of his older brother or comparing the two. He's clearly become worth talking about on the merit of his talents alone.

And, if Eli leads the Giants to another Super Bowl win this year, he may finally prove to his critics that he's as valuable and talented a quarterback as his storied older brother. Eli's not just Peyton's brother any more; he's a force in the NFL in his own right.