When Eli Manning retired in January of 2020, he did in order the best New York Giants quarterback of all time.
Manning was a two-time Tremendous Bowl champion, a two-time Tremendous Bowl MVP and held almost 30 franchise data along with a number of NFL postseason data.
Within the not-so-distant future, Manning is prone to be enshrined within the Professional Soccer Corridor of Fame.
However as spectacular a resume as he compiled, Manning’s NFL profession didn’t get off to essentially the most wonderful begin. He brought on controversy out of the gate, refusing to play for the then-San Diego Chargers, who chosen him with the primary general decide within the 2004 NFL draft.
Finally, the Chargers swung a take care of the Giants and traded him off to New York in alternate for quarterback Philip Rivers and a number of picks.
The explanation why Manning refused to play in San Diego remained unclear till after his retirement when the quarterback lastly revealed his motivations.
However what concerning the Giants? What attracted Manning to Large Blue versus different NFL groups?
“I feel simply the historical past of the Giants and their dedication to soccer and making an attempt to place a fantastic soccer crew collectively,” Manning informed Giants Wire this week. “There’s no hoopla, there aren’t any cheerleaders, there aren’t any loopy halftime reveals. It’s about going on the market and being one hundred pc dedicated to the crew and that’s the Mara household and the Tisch household.
“It doesn’t all the time imply you’re going to have success however you understand they’re one hundred pc dedicated to placing a fantastic product on the market and offering every little thing for the gamers, so it simply appeared like a corporation that may match the dedication that I’ve to soccer.”
The Giants aren’t a flashy crew, that a lot is true. And opposite to the present narrative, each John Mara and Steve Tisch are dedicated to placing an excellent product on the sphere and caring for their followers — or “prospects” because the late Wellington Mara typically referred to them.
Manning definitely embodied all of that in his profession, serving to to revitalize a fledgling franchise and return them again to glory.
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