When Daniel Jones replaced Eli Manning last season, football life came full-circle for Eli, who replaced Kurt Warner in the middle of his rookie season. In Year 2, things started to come together for the eventual sure-fire Hall of Famer, and he knows that the same will come for Jones, especially as he gets moving in the new offensive schemes of offensive coordinator Jason Garrett.
“It just takes time for an offense to come together, and for coaches to understand what plays his players run well. When you have new pieces to the puzzle, it takes time to come together, and you have to go through some rough patches – but if you stick with it, you just have to keep getting the reps and believe it’s going to get better,” Eli said in an appearance on WFAN’s Football Sunday with Marc Malusis and David Diehl. “Maybe some of the plays Coach Garrett loves, or were Tony Romo or Dak Prescott’s favorite plays, will work – but Daniel didn’t have the chance to get the reps with them, and the team didn’t have a chance to get that comfort level with them.”
A truncated offseason and modified preseason caused havoc for every team, but especially those with new pieces or schemes to get acclimated to. Still, despite an up-and-down rookie year and some notable issues, Eli knows what he sees in Jones is the recipe for success.
“Just from knowing Daniel, I think he throws the ball very well and hangs in the pocket tough, and when things are bad, he does pull it down and run and can get a first down,” Eli said. “I think he’s doing a lot of good things, but he has been behind a lot and he’s having to press and force things to try to make plays; that can create some great plays, but it can also create turnovers.”
Turnovers have been Jones’ biggest bug-a-boo, which goes along with Eli’s notion of having to press when playing from behind – but with experience, he says, comes wisdom.
“Definitely. He is great at extending plays, and now you have to learn that when you extend it and you’re outside the pocket, and you’re in a tough spot, you can throw it away, and then going for it on fourth down or a field goal might be in play,” Eli said. “I know he’s competitive and wants touchdowns and wants to get back in the game, but interceptions never help by any means. When it doesn’t look good, throw it away; sometimes, there’s just nothing else you can do, and trying to get to the next play is the best thing you can do.
Still, the tools are there.
“He’s fighting and competing and trying to do all the right things, and I think it will get smoother and easier as he gets more comfortable in this offense,” Eli said. “Hopefully, this is the week where things start clicking. This team hasn’t played a game with a lead yet, and that changes this a lot when you can do that.”
The Giants still hadn’t held a lead as of halftime of Week 4, and yardage was scarce in that first half against the Rams until the final drive, but Eli had some ideas on how the Giants offense could get moving without All-Pro back Saquon Barkley the rest of the way.
“I think you can get some three-step passes, some slants and short routes that can turn into big plays. If the defense knows you can’t run the ball, they can play more two-high safety and try to take away the intermediate throws, and know you won’t be patient enough to keep taking those all the way down the field,” Eli said. “So now, you can block with seven or eight and run play-action and get some double moves. It’s tough playing quarterback when you’re behind and losing yards in the run game, because defenses can play real conservative, keep things in front of them and take away the big plays.”
Oh, and speaking of experience – Eli had some thoughts on the man he’s beaten twice in the big game, Tom Brady, who has his Buccaneers at 3-1 through four weeks.
“It has been impressive the way he has player; I know the first game he had some throws he might want back, but when you change teams, go into a new situation after you’ve had the same offense your whole career, and then have a shortened preseason, it’s tough,” Eli said. “But, it’s been impressive for him to come in and play so well. He’s got some real weapons on that team, his arm seems as strong as ever, and he seems to have a great grasp of the new offense, which can take some time.”
And of course, what would an Eli appearance with Diehl be without story from the QB about one of his long-time linemen?
“Ha, I don’t know if there’s anything PG that I can tell – you get those offensive line training camp stories that aren’t able to be told here – but it was a lot of fun with those guys,” Eli laughed. “The best part with that group is that we were together for five or six years, which doesn’t happen often, and it was fun because you knew how important football was to them. They all worked extremely hard on their game, and every once in a while I’d throw them a bone to re-name an audible, and they’d come back with something totally inappropriate you could never say in a game! But that’s why you love ‘em.”
Check out Manning’s entire segment below, and tune in to Football Sunday with Marc Malusis and David Diehl every NFL Sunday at 9 a.m. on WFAN!
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