PHILADELPHIA — Even at 2-6, Eli Manning doesn’t see any reason why the Giants should throw in the towel.
“We still believe,” Manning said after a 15-7 victory Sunday over the spiraling Eagles that gave the Giants their second win in a row and distanced them a little further from the wreckage of a 0-6 start.
Manning’s comment might have sounded ridiculous on its face for a team with just two wins at the season’s halfway point, but nothing — not even the idea of a team winning the division despite losing its first six games — is outlandish in the woeful NFC East.
The Cowboys’ inexplicable last-second loss to the Lions on Sunday combined with the Giants’ victory means Tom Coughlin’s team is just two games out of first place. Not bad for a team being mentioned as a contender for the No. 1 overall pick just seven days ago.
“It’s been a great credit to this team and the coaches,” Manning said. “We’ve come in and fixed the problems, and these last two games, we’ve played kind of our best football.”
Manning and the Giants’ offense weren’t exactly at their best Sunday at Lincoln Financial Field, managing just five Josh Brown field goals despite three Eagles turnovers and brutal quarterback play from the combination of a gimpy Michael Vick and overmatched rookie Matt Barkley.
It was a similar storyline to the Giants’ drought-breaking victory last Monday over the Vikings, when Minnesota quarterback Josh Freeman nearly dented the seats at MetLife Stadium with a blizzard of overthrows.
The key for Manning for the second game in a row was avoiding the backbreaking turnovers that had plagued him during the six-game skid. He completed 25 of his 39 passes Sunday for a pedestrian 246 yards, but his turnover line — zero — was a thing of beauty to the Giants.
With an offensive line that’s improving and running game that is showing signs of life with Peyton Hillis (70 yards on 20 carries Sunday), Manning has stopped forcing plays and is taking what opponents give him.
“Eli has done a great job with [avoiding turnovers] the past two games,” Tom Coughlin said. “It’s just a matter of him being knowledgable of how this team perhaps has got to play.”
Manning and the offense also are getting a huge assist from the defense, which hasn’t allowed a touchdown in the past 10 quarters, but he said the turnaround by the offensive line stands out in his mind.
After getting sacked 16 times in the six-game losing streak, Manning has been taken down a mere three times in the past two weeks — including just once Sunday.
When you put that all together and then throw in the absence of a clear-cut leader in the division, Manning doesn’t see why the Giants should be counted out of the playoff race anytime soon.
“Guys have stepped up and done well, and we’re going to keep fighting,” Manning said. “Hopefully, you never know what can happen.”
Especially in the enigma known as the NFC East.