Steve Serby

Steve Serby

NFL

Eli can’t add to Giants problems

Welcome to Eli Manning’s worst nightmare: the starting running back in the head coach’s doghouse, an offensive line that couldn’t push Justin Bieber off the ball Sunday, an enemy defense that waits in ambush and defies the quarterback to beat it through the air and a defense that can’t get to the passer the way it should.

“He’ll figure it out, I think he’s pressing a little bit,” defensive end Justin Tuck said Monday. “I think Eli’s feeling there’s a lot of pressure on him to make a big play and he’s forcing the ball a little bit. I have all the faith that they’re going to correct it. He’s been a constant for us nine years here, and I have no doubt that he and that O-line and that whole offense will figure it out.”

Aaron Rodgers threw for 480 yards and four touchdowns Sunday against the Redskins without an interception. Matt Ryan threw for 374 yards and two touchdowns Sunday against the Rams without an interception. Philip Rivers threw for 419 yards and three touchdowns Sunday in Philadelphia without an interception. Peyton Manning threw for 307 yards and two touchdowns against the Giants without an interception.

Eli Manning threw four interceptions with big brother Peyton in the house and has seven in the two losses the Giants will take to Carolina.

In a league that is more quarterback-driven than ever, Eli is driving the Big Blue Bus dangerously off the road.

And so we sit here today with the Giants, record-wise, further away from MetLife Stadium, site of Super Bowl XLVIII, than the Geno Smith Jets. With realists shouting GetALife at Giants fans dreaming about their team representing the NFC at MetLife on Feb. 2.

Eli needs David Wilson to escape Tom Coughlin’s doghouse. He needs his shuffled and reshuffled line to develop chemistry and cohesiveness. He needs tight end Brandon Myers not to trip over Jimmy Hoffa’s underground arm tackle. He needs Rueben Randle not to fumble on his way into the end zone.

But most of all, he needs to remember how to be Elite Eli.

“Every interception has its own story, but I have to be smarter with the football, throw the ball more accurate, and we have to make more plays,” Manning said.

Without a running game, do you think you’re pressing?

“No, first interception was just a bad decision by me, second one was just a weird throw off a [defender’s] heel, and then after that, we were down 22 points. … Yeah, one was a fourth-and-10, probably pressing,” Manning said sarcastically. “The next one was just a bad read once the game was out of reach. But I think, for the most part, we’ve been throwing the ball well and doing some good things. We’ve been stuck in some second-and-longs, third-and-longs. We have to get the running game going, we have to be more balanced, and I think that’ll help things out.”

His play-action game has been reduced to pray-action.

“The few times we had play-action, they were playing Cover 2, and so we weren’t getting the safeties down much, we didn’t quite get the coverages we were hoping,” Manning said. “If you’re not running the ball well, they can play 2-high, they can keep the two safeties real deep and say, ‘Hey, don’t give ‘em the big plays.’ We have to help out our offensive linemen also. When you run the ball, it slows down the pass rush and you just get better down and distance.”

Wilson, obsessed with not fumbling the ball, carried just seven times for 17 yards, because he didn’t have Coughlin’s trust. The Giants had a shameful line of 19 carries, 23 rushing yards. Bill Parcells probably would have marched into the offensive line meeting room and mocked it as Club 23.

“We only averaged a yard a rush,” Manning said. “When you’re running the ball and losing two or three yards, it’s tough. You don’t want to be going backwards with the run game.”

But as the franchise quarterback, there are no excuses for going backwards with the passing game. Never before had Manning thrown seven picks in two weeks.

“I don’t think I can just get worried about the number, I have to look at the plays and look at the decision-making on my part,” Manning said. “The first one was a bad decision, the next two weren’t bad decisions, weren’t bad throws, just kind of bad circumstances. … Hopefully we just don’t get in those games where you’re down 22 points in the fourth quarter. At that point, I like to tell myself, ‘Hey, don’t throw interceptions, don’t force things when you don’t have to.’ But I’m going to compete. If it’s fourth-and-10, I’m going to give a guy a shot to make a play, and if it looks like it’s double coverage, I’m not going to lay down. … Sometimes you get some bad breaks, you get some unfortunate circumstances, but I think I just have to keep working and eliminate the ones that are bad decisions.”

Manning sounds as if he would welcome Wilson back in the backfield.

“He’s going to have to play for us and play well,” Manning said. “I think he’s got their confidence. I think David did a good job [Sunday] night running the ball, holding onto the ball and pass protection, doing all the things he had to do.”

Manning completed just two passes to a back (Da’Rel Scott) against the Broncos. He needs to get Wilson involved in the passing game because any moment can be a great moment.

“You can find ways to give him the ball, get him in the open field, and so I think we’ll try to do that and use him somewhat differently,” Manning said. “But he’s still a running back, and hopefully he can break some long ones for us.”

Ryan Tannehill threw for 319 yards and one touchdown without an interception against the Colts. Sam Bradford threw for 352 yards and three touchdowns with one interception against the Falcons. Matthew Stafford threw for 278 yards and two touchdowns without an interception against the Cardinals. EJ Manuel threw for 296 yards and one touchdown with one interception against the Panthers.

To err is human: Drew Brees threw for 322 yards with one touchdown and two interceptions against the Bucs. But the Saints won the game.

The Giants can’t win when Eli Manning throws for 362 yards with one touchdown and four interceptions.