When the New York Giants and head coach Pat Shurmur elected to bench veteran quarterback Eli Manning after two consecutive losses to open the season, it was thought that his career in blue would be over. However, a mild high ankle sprain to rookie passer Daniel Jones gave him one more crack at life, and Manning managed to scrape out a win in his final game against the Miami Dolphins.
In the most influential yet meaningless game in history, Manning was sent off on an emotional note, and even though the victory meant nothing in terms of playoff hopes, it meant the world to Eli and his family. Moving forward into week 16 against the Washington Redskins, Jones is looking healthy enough to play, as Shurmur’s “fast healer” quote is becoming a reality.
The New York Giants are hopeful their QB can play on Sunday:
On Wednesday, Jones practiced fully with the team, taking reps with running back Saquon Barkley to test his ankle after two weeks of doing individual work. He’s trending towards active status against Washington, which would spell the end for Manning as a Giant — 16 years of play coming to an end amid a full-team rebuild.
The team is far from settles, though, as Shurmur is still fighting for his job and general manager Dave Gettleman is pressing for any semblance of progress from his rookies.
Late round pick Darius Slayton as been stellar in his first year in the NFL, and cornerback DeAndre Baker has stepped up in recent weeks for the New York Giants. Toss in Julian Love’s development and Ryan Connelly at linebacker and Gettleman’s second draft class is turning out to be quite successful.
Most rebuilds take three seasons to show significant development, and with seven rookies earning considerable playing time on the defense this season, it’s justifiable that Gettleman has one more life in the game of a GM.