You don’t take a two-time Super Bowl MVP, place him in a blue plastic bag with the other recyclable plastics and toss him to the curb for pickup and disposal. Eli Manning isn’t going anywhere, so something around him must change.
That something must be the voices he hears on a daily basis in the workplace.
The Giants’ quarterback system is broken and must be fixed. Manning has run the same offense for 10 years, listened to the same head coach for a decade, been directed by the same offensive coordinator, Kevin Gilbride, for seven years. He has had many different quarterbacks coaches — currently it’s Sean Ryan, a bright young guy whom the Giants brought into the NFL in 2007 and who had previously served as quality control assistant and receivers coach and is about to complete his second season working with the quarterbacks.
In the room with Manning is Curtis Painter and rookie Ryan Nassib. In most other years, the Giants had an older veteran in the role of backup quarterback, whether it was Kurt Warner, Sage Rosenfels or David Carr. This year, Manning is the oldest quarterback in the meeting room and by far the most experienced and accomplished individual when the three players and Ryan go about their business.
A new support system is needed. Ownership and general manager Jerry Reese will have to make the call if coach Tom Coughlin is reluctant to summon someone into his office and tell him it’s time to go. The status quo cannot continue, not with Manning regressing at such an alarming rate that, for the first time, legitimate questions can be raised if the still boyish-looking Manning is on the downside of his career at 32 years old.
The salvaging must begin as soon as the season ends.
“They’re going to have to change their football team, their structure,’’ former Giants quarterback Phil Simms said on “NFL Monday QB’’ on CBS Sports Network. “And they’re going to have to change the way they’re going about what they’re trying to accomplish scheme-wise. So there’s a big overhaul coming for the Giants. It will be interesting to see.’’
This is not rapid reaction to the five interceptions he threw in the hard-to-watch 23-0 loss to the Seahawks because this has been a season-long deterioration, beginning with the very first pass he threw 14 weeks ago in Dallas, the first of his NFL-high 25 interceptions. At his best there was a calm confidence — please don’t call it swagger — as Manning seemed to operate with his own internal clock and perform with a methodical, though not always Swiss-timed, accuracy and precision. That is gone. He rarely steps into his throws, his pointing and gesturing at the line now seem pointless rather than dissecting. His mechanics never have been worthy of instructional videos, but he now needs an overhaul.
Who is going to do that? He has won two Super Bowls with Gilbride and Ryan — they look up to Manning, admire him. Can they be as tough on him as Manning needs them to be? Does Eli even want that? He told The Post last week he is “comfortable’’ in the offensive system and sees no reason for it to change. Well, it must change and that comfort must be rattled and replaced by newer, fresher ideas. The voice must be someone who has not basked in the glow of those Lombardi trophies with Eli.
One caveat: Would an experienced and proven offensive coordinator want to come to the Giants, knowing Coughlin will not be the head coach much longer, knowing he likely would not survive a regime change unless he were given some indication he might be the head-coach-in-waiting?
There is no candidate who is a natural fit as a replacement. Mike Sullivan is a former Coughlin assistant and currently the offensive coordinator for the Buccaneers, but he might get the Army head coaching job. Gary Kubiak, fired by the Texans, is unemployed, but that’s a reach. Mike Bloomgren helped develop Andrew Luck at Stanford. Eric Studesville, the Broncos running backs coach, is a former Jim Fassel assistant with the Giants and might be ready for a promotion. Hue Jackson is the former Raiders head coach and a respected offensive mind.
Coughlin on Monday said, “Oh yeah,’’ when asked if he has retained his faith in the offensive coaches. Asked specifically about Gilbride, Coughlin said: “It certainly hasn’t been a connect-all-the-dots-from-Day-One type of year. Kevin’s a pro, he’s been around, he’s done this a long time. We try to find ways to take advantage of things. It hasn’t been easy.’’
No one questions Manning’s work ethic.
“That Toyota is parked in the same parking spot when I get here at 6 a.m.’’ Justin Tuck said. “And when I’m getting out of the cold tub or when I’ve had a meeting late, I always see him still in the locker room. He’s going about his business the same way as in the years he led us to the Super Bowl and his Pro Bowl years. He’s done it the same way.’’
The same, the same, the same. The Giants must find a way to get Manning to work more productively. Something has to change because the same isn’t working.
Some notables from the loss to the Seahawks:
– The Giants need two new-and-improved starting offensive linemen for 2014. They must sign one in free agency and take one high in the NFL Draft, most likely with their first-round pick. They should re-sign Kevin Boothe and have him play guard or center. Will Beatty returns at left tackle — even though he’s been lousy this season — because he got paid a ton of money. Justin Pugh had a solid rookie year and starts somewhere in 2014, either at right tackle or one of the guard spots. Take or leave the rest of ‘em on the roster. Preferably leave.
– Remember the summertime talk about this possibly being the best wide receiver trio the Giants have ever had at one time? Chalk that up to heat stroke. If Victor Cruz (concussion, sprained knee) does not play again this season, Rueben Randle will get the chance to start, an audition for 2014, as the chances of Hakeem Nicks re-signing drop with each pass thrown his way that falls incomplete or into enemy hands. The big-play passing attack is a thing of the past, and the Giants need to find a big, athletic receiver to take the heat off Cruz in the slot.
– Tuck leads the team with nine sacks and, considering all the near-misses he had the first half of the season, it would be quite an upset if he does not finish with double-digit sacks for the first time since 2010. Heck, if he really turns it up the next two weeks, he might reach or surpass his career high of 12 sacks in 2008. That would certainly make it difficult not to resign him.