Teammates knock Eli verbally, will stay clear physically

With Eli Manning practicing without a helmet this afternoon, the locker room was filled with one-liners from teammates jabbing the quarterback.

“I thought we wore helmets at practice,” Chris Snee said. “I thought hat says were on Saturdays.”

Added Rich Seubert: “He’s got different standards than the rest of us.”

Chris Canty said that the Giants coaches have not warned the defensive players about getting too close to Manning in practice. But Canty said he’ll give Manning his space.

“I’ve hit that guy too many times,” Canty said, a reference to his days as a defensive lineman in Dallas. “I think we’ll leave him alone for now.”

Snee said that it will be enough for Manning to have a red jersey and no helmet as signs to stay away. But even without those warning flags, he said it’s pretty clear that Manning is the one guy you don’t want to be popping in a practice.

“I think everyone’s known that around here for a while,” he said.