Giants coach Tom Coughlin looks to Eli Manning for spark
Eli Manning and head coach Tom Coughlin of the New York Giants stand on the field during a game against the Atlanta Falcons at MetLife Stadium on Sunday, Sep. 20, 2015 in East Rutherford, New Jersey. Credit: Jim McIsaac
When it comes to games like this one, Tom Coughlin looks to one player to lift the Giants from their malaise: Eli Manning.
“He can do it,” Coughlin said of leaning on the quarterback to once again spur the team, this time in Sunday’s game against the Jets with the Giants’ playoff window closing. “He’s done it before.”
Manning said he doesn’t think of things in quite that way. “I try not to put more pressure on myself than there needs to be,” he said. “I just try to go out there and do my job. Have a game plan, know it, study the defense, have a great understanding of what they’re trying to do, what their responsibilities are in the defense, try to be able to get the ball out quickly, and get it to our playmakers.”
Coughlin did agree that Manning cannot win the game himself. “We’ve got to have some help,” he said. But it is comforting to have a quarterback who has been through these wringers before and come out of them victorious. Can he do it again?
“He has to,” Coughlin said. “He’s our guy and he’s done it so many times before.”
Revis watch?
The Giants are paying close attention to the status of the Jets’ Darrelle Revis, who is not practicing because of a concussion.
“We’ll see whether he plays or not,” Manning said. “You always want to see guys back healthy, and if they have an ability to play, play. But if he’s not out there, we’ll adjust, and I won’t complain about it.”
Giant steps
C Weston Richburg (ankle) and G Justin Pugh (concussion) were limited in Wednesday’s practice and could play on Sunday. RT Marshall Newhouse (back) did not practice and was replaced by rookie Bobby Hart, leaving open the possibility of rookie bookends on the o-line with Ereck Flowers starting at left tackle . . . TE Larry Donnell (neck) said he won’t have another MRI for “a couple of weeks” and while he feels fine he needs the medical images to clear him to return to the field . . . S Brandon Meriweather (knee) did not practice . . . Manning is the Giants’ nominee for this year’s Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year Award. He was the Giants’ nominee for the award in 2007, 2008, 2011 and 2012 as well. No Giants player has ever been selected for the award since it was instituted in 1970.
Tom Rock began covering sports for Newsday in 1996 and became its NFL columnist in 2022. He previously was Newsday's Giants beat writer beginning in 2008.
More Giants
