Eli Manning

Elisha Nelson Manning nicknamed as Eli plays quarterback for the NFL’s New York Giants. Manning, who played college ball for the University of Mississippi, is the younger brother of NFL quarterback Peyton Manning and the son of former NFL signal caller Archie Manning.

Initially chosen by the San Diego Chargers as the first overall pick in the 2004 NFL Draft, he was sent to the New York Giants in exchange for fourth overall pick Louis Rivers, plus the Giant’s third-round selection and their first- and fifth-round 2005 choices.

Manning started playing for the Giants in his first season. That year, he played in nine games, tossing six touchdowns and nine interceptions. Although his completion rate and QB rating has slowly improved over the past three seasons, his ratio of touchdown passes to interceptions has been fairly constant: 23.7-18.3. His four-year rating stands at 73.4. Over a period of four seasons, he has hit for 77 touchdowns and thrown 64 interceptions. He’s completed 54.7-percent of his passes.

Manning is a good athlete standing 6’4 and weighing 225 pounds. He shows solid arm strength too. Although he can fit the ball into tight spaces, he often tends to make mistakes. He can be patient while in the pocket but is prone to making bad plays when under pressure by either taking a sack or throwing an interception. The quarterback is not a very good runner and has difficulty escaping from pursuers. Manning, throughout much of his early career, has been inconsistent.

Although his regular season stats for 2007 were not spectacular, he played good enough in the post season to get the Giants to the Super Bowl where he went up against the heavily favored New England Patriots. In Super Bowl XLII with the help of an exceptional defense, Manning led his team to an upset victory over the undefeated New England Patriots 17-14. He was chosen as the game’s MVP.

Manning has various awards and recognition awarded to him till date. Few of them include Heisman Trophy finalist, SEC Player of The Year, Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award Winner and the Maxwell Award, in 2003. He was also selected as Pro Bowl player in 2008 and is a Super Bowl XLII champion too.