Eli Manning and the Giants are 4-0 in the preseason, but that doesn't mean they're ready to take the league by storm in Week 1. New York still has work to do as it begins to incorporate a new offensive system, and Eli Manning fully acknowledges that, but he has no doubts while the team continues to move forward.
On Friday the Giants finally revealed a little more of their offensive scheme against the Jets in the third week of the preseason. New York ushered in a new era this offseason with the addition of offensive coordinator Ben McAdoo, who was the former quarterbacks coach for the Green Bay Packers. But since McAdoo has been with New York, not much of the new offense has been exhibited - neither in training camp or the team's first three preseason games.
That changed in their fourth game on Friday, when Eli Manning threw 21 passes in the first two quarters compared to his 16 total in the first three games against the Bills, Steelers and Colts.
Many questions were raised about the effectiveness of the offense and whether or not the team was learning it quickly enough as a unit, but that's just inherent skepticism on behalf of football fans. With that being said, this is a big change for the Giants' organization - a family-owned business since 1925 that has rarely experienced such an overhaul, especially as of late. The Giants have primarily been successful with their pass rush and running game, which guided them to two Super Bowl victories in 2007 and 2011, but the past few years have seen big drop-offs in those aspects of their strategy. Ownership knew it was time to adapt once former offensive coordinator Kevin Gilbride resigned after last season. The team failed to make the postseason for the fourth time in five years and the struggling offense was perhaps the most glaring issue.
Gilbride was with the team for ten seasons (two as quarterbacks coach and eight as offensive coordinator) alongside coach Tom Coughlin and former No. 1 overall pick Eli Manning. Now, Manning, a two-time Super Bowl MVP, is dealing with a major alteration after being acclimated to the same offensive system for a decade in the NFL. But he isn't worried. Manning actually welcomes the change because it provides him with a challenge as well as the opportunity to start fresh with all of the new faces on the team (general manager Jerry Reese signed 26 free agents in the offseason, which was the most in team history).
"It's just a matter of having confidence in the system and fully trusting that it's going to give us opportunities to get guys open and have those guys do their job and win their individual battles," Manning told reporters at the team's training camp practice at the Quest Diagnostics Training Center at the Meadowlands.
Having trust in the system is just one pillar of the struggle - what about trusting all of the other players on the offensive side of the ball who are responsible for executing their assignments in a timely and effective fashion? A number of first-year free agents (RB Rashad Jennings, OL Geoff Schwartz, OL J.D. Walton, among others) and rookie draft picks (OL Weston Richburg, RB Andre Williams and WR Odell Beckham Jr.) have to start anew with the incumbent Giants players that include Manning, WR Victor Cruz, OL Will Beatty, WR Reuben Randle, and others. But even that doesn't seem to intimidate Manning.
"I think you need to have that trust before; you can't have doubts," Manning said in regards to everyone being on the same page and executing their individual assignments. "Yeah, we have to play better offensively, and we have to get into a rhythm and start calling plays and making things happen. I think sometimes we're trying to always make everything perfect or we're thinking too much. Everything's just about getting the opportunity and trying to win those [individual] battles."
Eli has nothing but good things to say about the offensive personnel at this point: he's impressed with rookie draft picks Andre Williams and Weston Richburg along with undrafted rookie free agent Corey Washington; he likes how the offensive line is working together, being that they're a new unit and the coaches are mixing and matching those who have the capability of playing more than one position; he's confident in the play-making ability of his receivers; and he thinks the cast of running backs are capable of pass protecting and making plays out of the backfield on top of carrying the ball.
We saw the most out of them this past Friday. The offense got off to a rough start but rebounded quickly. Manning ended up going 12-for-21 with a touchdown pass to Reuben Randle at the end of the second quarter. He was a combined 7-for-16 with 49 yards and no touchdowns in the team's first three games and was also sacked three times and lost a fumble. The running game has looked fairly solid throughout, but most are concerned with Eli bouncing back from his worst season in 2013 when he threw for a career-low 18 touchdowns and a league-leading 27 interceptions.
However, he's not dwelling on last year. Manning is immersing himself in becoming the best player he can be in the new offense.
"It's a lot of work. There's a lot going in. We still haven't installed the whole offense," he added. "There's still some thinking out there and we're still trying to understand some of the concepts that are going in. I felt we've improved and gotten better. I think guys are starting to understand the timing of the offense and know how quickly they have to get open based on their routes and I think we've definitely gotten better and feel more comfortable with everything."
Manning might not excessively exude his confidence like some other players might, but at this point in his career many should be aware that he's a confident player and leader. He's guided two wild card teams to Super Bowl victories over Tom Brady and the Patriots, including one in 2011 when the Giants became the first ever 9-7 team to win a Super Bowl. But forget about football. Manning and his brother Peyton are confident in a newfound skill of theirs: rapping.
The two released their latest rap video earlier in the month featuring their song "Fantasy Football Fantasy", which was promoting DirecTV NFL Sunday Ticket's new 'Fantasy Zone' channel that is dedicated to solely fantasy football news. Their first such video was released in 2013. The Giants quarterback briefly shared his thoughts on the matter.
"Yeah I thought it was a one-hit wonder for me last year, but I guess I had to come out with number two," he said jokingly.
Despite Manning's career-worst season in 2013, we know he's not a one-hit wonder at quarterback. The Giants open the season September 8 on Monday Night Football in Detroit against the Lions on ESPN.
