The New York Giants had their best season last fall since winning the Super Bowl over the New England Patriots for the second time. Head coach Ben McAdoo had a solid passing game going centered around Pro Bowl wideout Odell Beckham Jr. Steve Spagnuolo had his defense humming again. Then there was quarterback Eli Manning.
Look. Manning is not going to hold up in the NFL as long as his older brother Peyton did. He doesn’t miss starts, but his skill set is rapidly decaying. The younger Manning brother might be the most unathletic starting quarterback in the NFL heading into next season.
That being said, there are few quarterbacks a team would rather have under center in playoff time than Manning. He’s cool under pressure and usually makes the big throws when New York needs him to. Manning is a two-time Super Bowl Champion for a reason. He could win his third Lombardi Trophy in 2017.
New York has to be at the point where the front office has to realize that the championship window with Manning under center is closing rapidly. He has maybe 2.5 years left of high-end quarterbacking left in the tank. The Giants need to start looking for his heir apparent, but they can still win now with Manning in 2017.
In 2016, Manning completed 63.0 percent of his passes for 4,027 yards, 26 touchdowns and 16 interceptions. While he is no longer going to carry New York for extended stretches, he should have one more Super Bowl run up his sleeve with the right team around him.