His big brother has been making a mockery of defenses, performing as if he is giving a clinic at the Manning Passing Academy.
Eli Manning is 0-4.
Which means it is past time Sunday for Eli Manning to remember that he is a two-time Super Bowl MVP.
It is time for Eli Manning to find a way to lift his battered and bloodied Giants theiant way a franchise quarterback is supposed to, especially in his franchise’s most desperate hour.
The Giants need him to be better than nine interceptions and 11 turnovers, and this is no time for him to use the patchwork offensive line that has sabotaged him to a large degree as an excuse.
Tom Coughlin has implored the 12th Man to help the Giants win, and save their season.
It’s the man wearing No. 10 who needs to do that.
Big brother Peyton, who torched the Eagles for four touchdown passes in a .52-20 romp last Sunday, who is playing at a level no quarterback has played at, was kind enough to give Eli tips over the phone Tuesday night. Brotherly Love vs. the team that represents The City of Brotherly Love.
No one is asking Eli to be Peyton.
But asking him to be Eli, against a vulnerable secondary and defense, isn’t asking too much at all.
The Giants view him as an ascending quarterback in the prime of his career, and one of those years is on the brink of being wasted.
On Sunday, the Giants need him to ascend again, and soar high above Eagles.
The Giants are 0-4 for a myriad of reasons — Â the tattered state of the offensive line and it’s lack of quality depth., the absence of a running game and pass rush, the disappearance of Hakeem Nicks, a team-wide loss of swagger.
Manning getting dragged down by all that has crumbled around him is another.
It is past time for Eli Manning to rise above the rubble and be the battlefield commander Coughlin so desperately needs him to be on Sunday.
If Michael Vick and LeSean McCoy keep Manning off the field in Chip Kelly’s manic offense, then Manning must not blink, but answer the bell when it is his turn.
If he is more comfortable in the no-huddle, he should use it more.
If it is third-and-two or three, it is OK to resist being seduced by single coverage on the outside and rather than taking a shot, take the higher-percentage throw for the first down, and sustain a drive for a change, and give your defense a rest.
Vick will be confronting a depleted Giants secondary on Sunday. If a shootout unfolds, Manning must be ready to shoot it out.
A wing – – his wing – – and a prayer from Giants Nation on the day everyone will be counting on Eli Manning to save the season.