Last week, the Eagles were ravaged by Peyton Manning in Denver, 52-20, as the Broncos remained unbeaten. This week, the Eagles get Peyton’s youngest brother, Eli. Perhaps seeing one Manning right after seeing another will be helpful to the Eagles, who are allowing 34.5 points a game in their 1-3 start.
Or perhaps not.
“Obviously they’re brothers, both extremely successful quarterbacks,’’ first-year Eagles coach Chip Kelly said Wednesday. “But it’s two different offensive systems in terms of what Denver is running and what the Giants are running. I don’t see an advantage that Peyton did this, Eli is going to do this.’’
It sure is two different systems. The Broncos are operating on all cylinders, and Peyton Manning has been otherworldly, with 16 touchdown passes and no interceptions. Eli and the Giants are another story. Their offense has bumped along, struggling to get first downs, much less touchdowns, and Eli’s numbers are not attractive: Six touchdowns, nine interceptions and an 0-4 record. He’s also been sacked 14 times and taken more of a physical beating than usual.
“From Eli, the one thing you marvel at is just how accurate he is,’’ Kelly said. “He may be the best deep ball thrower in the game. The other thing I don’t think Eli gets credit for is just how tough he is. He gets hit, just gets up and has the same exact demeanor, then goes and continues to do the same exact thing. I think there’s a real toughness to Eli, an extreme accuracy when he’s throwing the football.
“There’s times when I think everybody thinks, ‘We’re pretty close in our coverage,’ all of a sudden he fits the ball in there. Especially with balls down the field, that’s what separates Eli from a lot of other quarterbacks, how accurate he is in the down the field throws.’’