(
)
By now, calling Eli Manning elite is like calling the late George Steinbrenner bossy, or Leona Helmsley the Queen of Mean. No need to insult our intelligence.
It is time to crown Eli Manning the King.
King Eli.
The King of NFL Quarterbacks.
WHO’S YOUR NO. 1? RANK THE NFL QBs HERE
If you are talking solely about pinpoint accuracy, then Aaron Rodgers has to be your man. Rodgers can sling it better than anyone and has seamlessly filled the giant shoes of Brett Favre. Cheeseheads will be quick to remind anyone with a New York bias that their A-Rod has far better mobility than King Eli as well. Fair enough.
Tom Brady, with his three rings (five if King Eli weren’t standing in his way), and Drew Brees, a record-breaking machine, deserve to be in any conversation. Gym rats with golden arms and superior leadership skills. And some precincts might vote for Peyton Manning, shaking off the rust the way he is following the four neck surgeries and a year away. Ben Roethlisberger, with his two rings, remains elite. Matt Ryan is making his elite move. Andrew Luck and RGIII are tomorrow’s elite.
Here’s how I judge them:
One game to win. One quarterback to win it.
King Eli.
Two minutes on the clock, three points down, one quarterback to tie it.
King Eli.
Two minutes on the clock, four points down, one quarterback to win it.
King Eli.
Calmer than any of them in the eye of the storm.
Twenty-two regular-season wins following a fourth-quarter deficit or tie.
King Eli is the quarterback the Jets have longed for over the past decade to beat Brady in the big game.
King Eli is the quarterback Giants fans would no longer trade for Big Ben or Philip Rivers.
Would Bill Belichick have three rings with King Eli? Ask Sinatra. If you can make it here, you can make it anywhere.
The King is 31 years old and just entering his prime, and every coach, from Vince Lombardi to Bill Parcells to Belichick, would have loved him as their quarterback as much as Tom Coughlin does today.
And it isn’t only because he is as clutch and resilient as Derek Jeter has been, or because he is a coach on the field, or because he has diligently nurtured young receivers like Hakeem Nicks and Victor Cruz and didn’t bat an eyelash when Plaxico Burress left, or because he is the same guy every day and never sunbathes shirtless in Central Park or is called into Roger Goodell’s office for running afoul of the law or the NFL shield, or any of that.
He is King Eli because he never misses a day on his throne.
From the time Coughlin gave him the keys to the Big Blue kingdom with seven games left in his rookie 2004 season, King Eli has been there for his team and for his franchise every time there is a game on the schedule, and that means 137 consecutive times. Come hell or plantar fasciitis.
Death, taxes and King Eli under center. Who loves playing quarterback the way Cal Ripken Jr. loved playing shortstop.
“I think as a quarterback, as a teammate, you want to show your teammates that you’re going to be here, be competing, be there at practice every day, focused every day, ready to get better and competing every day at practice — not walking through anything,” Manning said before the January’s NFC Championship game in San Francisco.
Remember when we assailed him for his lack of Simms-ian fire and slumped shoulders and hangdog look? When Tiki Barber poked fun at his “comical” leadership? Does anyone now care that King Eli does not celebrate touchdown passes with a Discount Double Check? Or does not race wild-eyed, helmet raised high in his hand, the way Favre did? Turns out his Ice Man temperament is just what Drs. Mara and Tisch could have ordered. He’s the Talk Is Cheap, Play the Game leader of the Coughlin Giants.
“Eli is the best quarterback in the NFL,” NBC’s Rodney Harrison said.
We appreciated Phil Simms more after he was gone.
Let’s appreciate King Eli while he’s here.
Long live the King!
steve.serby@nypost.com