Eli emerges from shadows to propel Giants to 10-1
GLENDALE, AZ – Rarely does a Super Bowl MVP simply hide in the weeds.
It is not supposed to happen this way. Not on a defending championship team. Not in New York. Not on a team, that is now 10-1. Not on a team, that is dominating the league in such resounding fashion.
Welcome to the new life of Eli Manning.
Somehow, the brute force and effectiveness of the Giants running game along with their stout defense has made Manning in many ways a forgotten man as the team has thrown less mostly due to non-necessity.
Amazingly, he was given the term that many quarters take insulting:
“He’s a game manager.”
Yet on Sunday, with starting running back Brandon Jacobs in sweatpants and a t-shirt on the sideline as a game-time decision and his big play receiver Plaxico Burress sidelined after one series with a nagging hamstring, there he was once again showing everyone that you couldn’t dare him to bear you, because he will.
He did it to the New England Patriots on this same field in Super Bowl XLII. Returning to the site 294 days later after their historic triumph, it was Manning again, large and in charge, leading his team to a 37-29 victory over the Arizona Cardinals at University of Phoenix Stadium.
Showing that it is suddenly an indestructible, unstoppable force, the team reached into it depth of tricks and found new heroes. It has become a staple of the best team in football. No Jacobs? The production comes from somewhere else. No Plaxico? The number is called for someone else to step up.
And here is Manning to hold and bring it all together.
With the Cardinals presenting an eight man front to take away Jacobs’ replacement Derrick Ward. Eli went 26 for 33 for 240 yards and 3 touchdown passes with a passer rating of 127.3, answering every time Arizona had the lead or even got close.
After the offense went three-and-out and the Cardinals opened the scoring with a field goal, the Giants responded with an 11 play, 62 yard drive punctuated by a one-yard Ward touchdown run to take the 7-3 lead.
JJ Arrington returned John Carney’s kickoff 55 yards to set up Arizona with a short field in Giants territory. From there, the explosive Cardinals offense regained the lead as potential MVP-Kurt Warner drove the ball inside the five and running back Tim Hightower scored on a four-yard touchdown run to give them a 9-7 lead. An attempted two-point conversion failed.
When an offsides call on the kickoff gave the Giants a second chance, Coach Tom Coughlin chose to replace regular kick returner Ahmad Bradshaw with receiver/punt returner Domenik Hixon. The result was genius. Hixon scampered 83 yards down to the Arizona 17 before being tripped up from behind. However, the offense stalled, settling for a 33-yard Carney field goal.
Warner (32 for 52, 351 yards) nearly directed his offense to another touchdown pass on their next possession. On a first-and-goal from the Giants 8 yard line, his pass looked as if it would be caught by receiver Larry Fitzgerald (five receptions for 71 yards). At the last moment, rookie Kenny Phillips punched the ball out of his hands and eventually the Cardinals were forced to kick another field goal and only led 12-10.
Again, the lead didn’t last long. Hixon (three returns for 180 yards), doing his best Devin Hester impression, took the kickoff 68 yards down to the Cardinals 32. He could have potentially scored again but he was tripped up again. Manning took advantage this time when he found Amani Toomer for a 10-yard touchdown pass to give the Giants a 17-12 lead going into halftime.
In the third quarter, Manning and the Giants struck again. Justin Tuck sacked Warner and forced him to fumble. The Giants recovered the ball at the Cardinals 40. Manning capitalized on the good fortune finding seldom-used fullback Madison Hedgecock on a two-yard touchdown pass to up the lead to 24-12.
Nearing the end of the third quarter, Arizona got the score to 24-19 when they drove 90 yards for a touchdown, aided by four defensive penalties, three on cornerback Aaron Ross. It was time for an answer and Manning would once again deliver.
Arizona had done a very good job of controlling the best rushing offense in the NFL. In Jacobs’ absence. Ward (20 carries – 69 yards) was not providing the same punch. They were daring Manning to beat them knowing that he could and that he possessed many weapons at his disposal.
He would do just that.
He found tight end Kevin Boss (four receptions – 48 yards) for 28 yards down to the Cardinals 37. A third down completion to Steve Smith for nine yards, followed up with a short five-yard completion to Ward put the ball on the Arizona 10. On first down, Manning found Boss again for a touchdown and a 31-19 lead.
Another Carney field goal came after rookie Terrell Thomas got his first NFL interception made it 34-19. The Cardinals scored to make it 34-26 and essentially conceded their inability to stop the Giants offense by electing for an onside kick with 4:02 remaining. Each team traded field goals to conclude the scoring.
The Giants defense, despite the final numbers, played exceptional. Warner threw for 352 yards, but they came on 52 attempts and no pass was completed for more than 32 yards. Arizona attempted only five runs in the second half and Warner consistently harassed by oncoming Giant defenders.
Filling in for the injured Burress, Hixon shined again. In addition to his splendid kick returns, he led the team in receptions (6) and yardage (57), along with an 11 yard run on a reverse.
In the last four games, the Giants have scored 35, 36, 30 and 37 against four of the top 10 defenses in the league. It appears that no team has been able to find an answer to slow down this train.
When they want to run it, they can.
When they want to throw it, they can.
It appears the only thing that can stop the Giants are themselves.
Manning is poised not to let that happen.
GLENDALE, AZ – Rarely does a Super Bowl MVP simply hide in the weeds.
It is not supposed to happen this way. Not on a defending championship team. Not in New York. Not on a team, that is now 10-1. Not on a team, that is dominating the league in such resounding fashion.
Welcome to the new life of Eli Manning.
Somehow, the brute force and effectiveness of the Giants running game along with their stout defense has made Manning in many ways a forgotten man as the team has thrown less mostly due to non-necessity.
Amazingly, he was given the term that many quarters take insulting:
“He’s a game manager.”
Yet on Sunday, with starting running back Brandon Jacobs in sweatpants and a t-shirt on the sideline as a game-time decision and his big play receiver Plaxico Burress sidelined after one series with a nagging hamstring, there he was once again showing everyone that you couldn’t dare him to bear you, because he will.
He did it to the New England Patriots on this same field in Super Bowl XLII. Returning to the site 294 days later after their historic triumph, it was Manning again, large and in charge, leading his team to a 37-29 victory over the Arizona Cardinals at University of Phoenix Stadium.
Showing that it is suddenly an indestructible, unstoppable force, the team reached into it depth of tricks and found new heroes. It has become a staple of the best team in football. No Jacobs? The production comes from somewhere else. No Plaxico? The number is called for someone else to step up.
And here is Manning to hold and bring it all together.
With the Cardinals presenting an eight man front to take away Jacobs’ replacement Derrick Ward. Eli went 26 for 33 for 240 yards and 3 touchdown passes with a passer rating of 127.3, answering every time Arizona had the lead or even got close.
After the offense went three-and-out and the Cardinals opened the scoring with a field goal, the Giants responded with an 11 play, 62 yard drive punctuated by a one-yard Ward touchdown run to take the 7-3 lead.
JJ Arrington returned John Carney’s kickoff 55 yards to set up Arizona with a short field in Giants territory. From there, the explosive Cardinals offense regained the lead as potential MVP-Kurt Warner drove the ball inside the five and running back Tim Hightower scored on a four-yard touchdown run to give them a 9-7 lead. An attempted two-point conversion failed.
When an offsides call on the kickoff gave the Giants a second chance, Coach Tom Coughlin chose to replace regular kick returner Ahmad Bradshaw with receiver/punt returner Domenik Hixon. The result was genius. Hixon scampered 83 yards down to the Arizona 17 before being tripped up from behind. However, the offense stalled, settling for a 33-yard Carney field goal.
Warner (32 for 52, 351 yards) nearly directed his offense to another touchdown pass on their next possession. On a first-and-goal from the Giants 8 yard line, his pass looked as if it would be caught by receiver Larry Fitzgerald (five receptions for 71 yards). At the last moment, rookie Kenny Phillips punched the ball out of his hands and eventually the Cardinals were forced to kick another field goal and only led 12-10.
Again, the lead didn’t last long. Hixon (three returns for 180 yards), doing his best Devin Hester impression, took the kickoff 68 yards down to the Cardinals 32. He could have potentially scored again but he was tripped up again. Manning took advantage this time when he found Amani Toomer for a 10-yard touchdown pass to give the Giants a 17-12 lead going into halftime.
In the third quarter, Manning and the Giants struck again. Justin Tuck sacked Warner and forced him to fumble. The Giants recovered the ball at the Cardinals 40. Manning capitalized on the good fortune finding seldom-used fullback Madison Hedgecock on a two-yard touchdown pass to up the lead to 24-12.
Nearing the end of the third quarter, Arizona got the score to 24-19 when they drove 90 yards for a touchdown, aided by four defensive penalties, three on cornerback Aaron Ross. It was time for an answer and Manning would once again deliver.
Arizona had done a very good job of controlling the best rushing offense in the NFL. In Jacobs’ absence. Ward (20 carries – 69 yards) was not providing the same punch. They were daring Manning to beat them knowing that he could and that he possessed many weapons at his disposal.
He would do just that.
He found tight end Kevin Boss (four receptions – 48 yards) for 28 yards down to the Cardinals 37. A third down completion to Steve Smith for nine yards, followed up with a short five-yard completion to Ward put the ball on the Arizona 10. On first down, Manning found Boss again for a touchdown and a 31-19 lead.
Another Carney field goal came after rookie Terrell Thomas got his first NFL interception made it 34-19. The Cardinals scored to make it 34-26 and essentially conceded their inability to stop the Giants offense by electing for an onside kick with 4:02 remaining. Each team traded field goals to conclude the scoring.
The Giants defense, despite the final numbers, played exceptional. Warner threw for 352 yards, but they came on 52 attempts and no pass was completed for more than 32 yards. Arizona attempted only five runs in the second half and Warner consistently harassed by oncoming Giant defenders.
Filling in for the injured Burress, Hixon shined again. In addition to his splendid kick returns, he led the team in receptions (6) and yardage (57), along with an 11 yard run on a reverse.
In the last four games, the Giants have scored 35, 36, 30 and 37 against four of the top 10 defenses in the league. It appears that no team has been able to find an answer to slow down this train.
When they want to run it, they can.
When they want to throw it, they can.
It appears the only thing that can stop the Giants are themselves.
Manning is poised not to let that happen.
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