Deep down every New York Giants fan knew this day would come. An end of an era as Eli Manning stepped away and announced his retirement from the NFL on Wednesday.
What amazed me about Eli Manning was the level of professionalism he showed on and off the field. His coyness with the media, his dedication for his cause, and most of all the way he carried himself on the field.
Eli never publicly threw any teammate under the bus and he was reliable as reliable can be. Only missed one start going into the 2019 season when Ben McAdoo started Geno Smith.
The big picture is that some Giants fans only remember Eli Manning as their quarterback. Daniel Jones will have big shoes to fill on every level both on and off the field.
I personally remember a game against Philadelphia back in 2005 where the Giants were down 17 points in the 4th quarter and were led back by Eli Manning. I just remembered at that point how special he was as a player and became “My QB.”
As I became more involved with the media, I was lucky enough to cover the Giants and spoken to Eli and watched him from a different perspective. What made me ore amazed then his play on the field was the kind of man he was off it.
Every player on the field should model their attitude, work etihic and mindset like Eli. If they did, the leauge may not have the culture problem it has today.
I will end this with a personal note to Eli.
You gave us so many memories on the field and father time catches up to all of us. After watching you handle the situation with such class and such poise, it became an inspiration on how to handle a tough situation.
Thank you for the memories, you bought such joy to both myself, my friends and my family.
The locker room, this team and the city of New York will not be the same without you under center.
