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Eli Manning is hard to figure out at times. He wins Super Bowls, but he also has times where looking lost and pout-y is raised to an art form... In his 11 year career, he's thrown 184 interceptions, and has been sacked 279 times. In 2013, he reached an all-time low point, throwing to the wrong guy 27 times, and the New York media sharks began to carve him up daily. The start of the 2014 season looked like a continuation of the previous year for Manning, and the new offense installed during the off season began to look like a train wreck...
The New York Giants have had a tough year. At 5-9, they don't have any post season hopes left to dash. There's been bright spots for the Giants though. Odell Beckham - taken with the #12 overall draft choice in the 2014 NFL Draft - has burst onto the scene. Since week #9, he's been on fire; accounting for 866 of his thus far season total of 972 receiving yards and nine touchdowns. He's a guy Eli really needed to shine, with the loss in the off season of Hakeem Nicks to free agency, and the personal issues with Ruben Randle.
Manning has sputtered this season with an offensive scheme that seems tailor made for only a few opponents. There's a huge learning curve for everyone involved when a new offense is installed, and the pressure to get it going falls on the quarterback. Eli Manning hasn't done a bad job, but he hasn't shined this season. He's on pace to hit what seem to be his stock passing number: 4000 yards. His interception rate is half what it was in 2013, with 13. He's suffered from a lack of production at tight end, and a 22nd ranked running game. Here's his season stats so far, courtesy of NFL.com:
| REGULAR SEASON | GAMES | PASSING | RUSHING | FUMBLES | |||||||||||||||||
| WK | Game Date | Opp | Result | G | GS | Comp | Att | Pct | Yds | Avg | TD | Int | Sck | SckY | Rate | Att | Yds | Avg | TD | FUM | Lost |
| 1 | 09/08 |
 @ DET
|
L 14-35 | 1 | 1 | 18 | 33 | 54.5 | 163 | 4.9 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 19 | 53.0 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| 2 | 09/14 |
ARI
|
L 14-25 | 1 | 1 | 26 | 39 | 66.7 | 277 | 7.1 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 17 | 83.0 | 1 | 5 | 5.0 | 0 | -- | -- |
| 3 | 09/21 |
HOU
|
W 30-17 | 1 | 1 | 21 | 28 | 75.0 | 234 | 8.4 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 8 | 123.2 | 1 | -1 | -1.0 | 0 | -- | -- |
| 4 | 09/25 |
@ WAS
|
W 45-14 | 1 | 1 | 28 | 39 | 71.8 | 300 | 7.7 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 117.5 | 1 | 1 | 1.0 | 1 | -- | -- |
| 5 | 10/05 | ATL | W 30-20 | 1 | 1 | 19 | 30 | 63.3 | 200 | 6.7 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 7 | 104.9 | 2 | -3 | -1.5 | 0 | -- | -- |
| 6 | 10/12 |
@ PHI
|
L 0-27 | 1 | 1 | 13 | 23 | 56.5 | 151 | 6.6 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 32 | 76.5 | 2 | 3 | 1.5 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 7 | 10/19 | @ DAL | L 21-31 | 1 | 1 | 21 | 33 | 63.6 | 248 | 7.5 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 116.7 | 1 | 11 | 11.0 | 0 | -- | -- |
| 8 | Bye | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | 0.0 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | ||
| 9 | 11/03 | IND | L 24-40 | 1 | 1 | 27 | 52 | 51.9 | 359 | 6.9 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 10 | 86.9 | 1 | 18 | 18.0 | 0 | 2 | 1 |
| 10 | 11/09 | @ SEA | L 17-38 | 1 | 1 | 29 | 44 | 65.9 | 283 | 6.4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 13 | 81.9 | -- | -- | -- | -- | 1 | 1 |
| 11 | 11/16 | SF | L 10-16 | 1 | 1 | 22 | 45 | 48.9 | 280 | 6.2 | 1 | 5 | 2 | 15 | 36.6 | -- | -- | -- | -- | 1 | 0 |
| 12 | 11/23 |
DAL
|
L 28-31 | 1 | 1 | 29 | 40 | 72.5 | 338 | 8.4 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 10 | 112.3 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| 13 | 11/30 |
@ JAC
|
L 24-25 | 1 | 1 | 24 | 34 | 70.6 | 247 | 7.3 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 34 | 101.0 | -- | -- | -- | -- | 2 | 2 |
| 14 | 12/07 |
@ TEN
|
W 36-7 | 1 | 1 | 26 | 42 | 61.9 | 260 | 6.2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 77.5 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| 15 | 12/14 | WAS | W 24-13 | 1 | 1 | 23 | 34 | 67.6 | 250 | 7.4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 12 | 118.5 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| TOTAL | 14 | 14 | 326 | 516 | 63.2 | 3,590 | 7.0 | 26 | 13 | 27 | 182 | 90.0 | 9 | 34 | 3.8 | 1 | 7 | 4 | |||
Like I said, his season looks good, but nothing ground breaking. But a closer look at his numbers makes me think it's impossible to predict just how good he will be in any given week? He's had a tough time against NFC West opponents this season, throwing 8 of his 13 interceptions against Arizona, San Francisco and Seattle. Eli isn't what anyone would call a "mobile" quarterback, and fierce pass rushes appear to rattle him. His QB ratings are all over the chart, with a low of 36.6 against the 49ers, and high of 123.2 when he faced Houston in week #3.
The emergence of Beckham at receiver may very well have saved Eli Manning's job. The "blame game" reaches new heights in the "Big Apple". Manning, and head coach Tom Coughlin have been taking heat all season long, with many in sports media wondering if the two would be headed out of town as 2015 rolls in. Depending on how well the Giants finish out this season, I think it's entirely possible too. But the odds on Eli Manning leaving are shrinking with the pro-evaluations beginning to stream in regarding college quarterback prospects. This is a weak class at the position, and unless the Giants claw their way up to grab a top flight prospect, I think Eli may very well be the best the team can do...
The trouble with evaluating Eli Manning has as much to do with his surrounding supporting cast, as it does the man himself. The Giants' defense has been on a quarterback-sacking tear of late, with 22 in the last three games. OK, their opponents weren't what anyone would call strong, but 22? Field position is something Eli can work with, and the New York defense has been delivering of late.
It's just my opinion of course, but the Eli Manning who shows up is decided in the first few minutes of every game he plays. If he struggles out the gate, he folds. If he finds a rhythm, he's as good as any quarterback in the league -including his more famous brother...