N.Y. Giants Arrive in Phoenix for SBXLII

Blogging the National Football League, Blogging the NFL

Unlike their New England Patriots, who arrived yesterday during a downpour, the N.Y. Giants landed in Arizona this afternoon to beautifully sunny skies. Using the same media structure as their predecessor opponents, they did their press conferences right away and all eyes were on Giants QB Eli Manning. Everyone wanted to know how Eli went from a seemingly average NFL quarterback (with an uncertain future) to a mistake-free superstar. He had a perfect explanation:

“I just haven’t made many mistakes. With the way our defense is playing, with the way we are running the ball and doing some good things, that is just what it is going to take. Same thing against New England. You can’t give them turnovers. You have to find completions and our guys have done a great job of getting open and the offensive line is protecting and the running backs are running the ball, so we haven’t been in a lot of tough situations. We haven’t been behind in games late. We haven’t had a whole lot of third-and-long situations that you feel that you have to convert on this down and distance. It is just about managing the game and playing smart.”

Whoa, that was a loaded last sentence. “It’s just about managing the game and playing smart.” This is so true and it’s nice to see a player admit it. But in the process of managing the game and playing smart, Eli has gained the necessary confidence to make some of the throws he was simply not making earlier in his career. Eli can say he never lost his confidence. And his teammates can say they never lost confidence in him. But neither would be true. All of the things Eli mentioned have just snowballed into what just might be a world championship in less than a week.