The Giants finally have acquired the heir apparent to Eli Manning. No one knows, however, when Daniel Jones will become the heir actual. And Manning doesn’t seem to care.
“He’s had no response,” coach Pat Shurmur said Saturday, via Jordan Raanan of ESPN.com. “I will say this again: I’ve never been around a person that can stay in the moment better than Eli. And I think that is something that is really, really unique about him. He’s staying in the moment.”
The moment for Eli entails embracing the last year of his contract and, possibly, the last year of his tenure with the Giants.
“He’s training to play and have a terrific season,” Shurmur said. “He looks really good out here throwing and moving, doing all the things necessary. It’s his second year in our system. So he knows what he’s doing better than some of the guys teaching it.”
Knowing it and executing it are two different things. If Eli and the rest of the offense can’t make it work, and if the defense likewise struggles to the point where the Giants fade from contention, it may be time for the team to turn the page and embrace the future. With one sportsbook setting the over-under on Jones’ starts at 7.5, someone sees a very real possibility that one of the moments in which Eli is staying will be the one in which he’s told that he’s taking a seat.
And this time it won’t be a one-game blip. This time it will most likely be the last time Eli plays for the Giants.