The Giants have made clear that it’s not Eli Manning’s job to mentor rookie quarterback Davis Webb. But Webb treated Manning more like a coach than a peer when the two met for the first time.
“I just wanted to welcome him to the team, let him know if he has any questions or needs anything in the next few days, I was here for him,” Manning said. “He responded to that with, ‘Yes, sir.’ I told him we were off to a bad start. Please do not refer to me as sir. I appreciate the manners, but we’re teammates. I was always taught the same thing. Anyone older than me, I have to call them sir. But hopefully, we straightened that out.”
Manning said he’ll be happy to help Webb in any way he can, even if that’s not really his job.
“I really don’t know much about Davis,” Manning said. “I know he started off at Texas Tech and transferred to Cal his senior year. I know he’s a big kid and it sounds like he has a strong arm. I know a few of the other names and several other quarterbacks that were in the draft. A couple of them I had met before at our [Manning family] passing camp in [Louisiana in] the summer. Several have been to that. You get to know them a little bit and watch them in college. I look forward to meeting Davis, welcoming him to the team and see if he needs any help from me. I’m always happy to give it.”
But next time, Davis, call him Eli.