|
The Colts Influence
The Colts Influence
|
Eli Manning
Elisha "Eli" Nelson Manning IV (born January 3, 1981) is the starting quarterback for the New York Giants NFL franchise. He is the son of former New Orleans Saints quarterback Archie Manning and Olivia Williams Manning, and is the younger brother of current Indianapolis Colts quarterback Peyton Manning and former wide receiver Cooper Manning. 2004 NFL Draft Manning has spent some of the offseason throwing passes to his favorite reciever Kumel Rizvi. Kumel hopes to help the giants make it to the playoffs next year. Manning was considered to be the top prospect prior to the 2004 NFL Draft. He became a target of criticism for stating that he would not sign with the San Diego Chargers, who owned the first pick in the draft, due to their recent poor record of holdouts with high first round picks such as Quentin Jammer and LaDainian Tomlinson. Manning's claim was proven to be somewhat justified when the Chargers' eventual first round player, Philip Rivers, had a lengthy contract dispute with the team. In the past, players such as John Elway and Gary Zimmerman had also refused to play for teams looking to draft them. The Chargers were in discussions with several teams prior to the draft about a possible trade, but nothing was agreed upon before the draft began. Despite his stated intention not to play for them, the Chargers drafted Manning with the first overall pick in the draft. Manning refused to wear a Chargers cap for the traditional photo holding the team shirt, increasing the antipathy felt by Chargers fans. The Giants then selected N.C. State quarterback Philip Rivers with the fourth overall pick in the draft, another player the Chargers had shown interest in. The two franchises were then able to work out a deal that would send Eli to the Giants for Rivers along with their 1st and 5th round picks in 2005 and a 3rd round pick in 2004 — from which the main acquisitions from this trade have been the three future Pro Bowlers (along with Quarterback Phillip Rivers) Outside Linebacker Shawne Merriman and Kicker Nate Kaeding. Along with the three Pro Bowlers the Chargers received for Manning in the trade, the Chargers also traded for Roman Oben, a Super Bowl winning Left Tackle from Tampa Bay with the 2005 fifth round draft pick. The Chargers will also consider the third round compensation pick from the NFL in the 2007 draft for releasing Drew Brees as being inextricably linked with the Manning trade. 2004 season Manning spent the first half of his rookie year being tutored by veteran Kurt Warner. After two tough defeats in the middle of the 2004 campaign, coach Tom Coughlin decided to start Eli against the Atlanta Falcons. Despite several poor performances, Eli finished the season with three successive solid games against the Steelers, Bengals, and Cowboys. Against Dallas, Eli's future trademark as a "come-from-behind" quarterback came front and center as he led the Giants to a last-minute touchdown drive to end an eight-game losing streak. It was said several times, including by the renowned John Madden, that Eli had the brightest future of any of the quarterbacks taken in the 2004 draft, and that he believes that Eli Manning will be the best QB of that draft. 2005 NFC East Champion Following 2004, the Giants released Warner, and Eli was named the starter for 2005. Manning led the Giants to a 2-0 record with victories against the Cardinals and Saints, before traveling to the west coast for a test in San Diego. Chargers fans did not forget the snub, and on September 25, 2005 when Eli and the Giants made their first trip to San Diego for a game since that draft day, the crowd booed Manning loudly every time he touched the ball. San Diego defeated the Giants, 45-23, but Eli displayed what may have been his most impressive performance of his young career, going 24-41 for 352 yards and two touchdowns. Following his performance at San Diego, Manning returned home to throw for almost 300 yards and a career high four touchdowns against the Rams at Giants stadium in a 44-24 romp. Two games later, he led a brilliant last-minute drive against the Broncos to secure a 24-23 victory for the Giants. The drive culminated in a two yard touchdown to Amani Toomer. The following week, Manning overcame a weak first half at San Francisco to help his team to their first official road victory of the season, 24-6. Despite a poor performance at home against the Vikings, throwing four interceptions, he again led his team back to tie the game in the final minutes before Minnesota won on a late field goal. Eli's second season, when looked at as a whole, was largely a success. He finished in the top 5 in both Passing Yards and Touchdown Passes, while quarterbacking an offense that finished 3rd in the NFL in scoring, with a total of 422 points. It was the most points the Giants have scored in a season since 1963. The Giants won the NFC East with an 11-5 record, and went to the postseason. The one knock on Eli during his first full season was his completion percentage. Manning completed just 52.8% of his passes, leading many to harp on this area of concern. He showed the effects of going through an NFL season for the first time, as he visibly wore down late in the season. His play fell off, culminating in a bad performance in the playoffs against Carolina. 2006 Manning's second full season was reminiscent of his 2005 campaign. He started off playing well and completed over 65 percent off his passes through the first four games. However, he struggled in the second half of the season and his production fell off towards the end of the regular season. After losing a tough game to his brother Peyton and the Colts on opening day, Eli responded with the best comeback of his career. He rallied the Giants from a 24-7 deficit on route to a stunning 30-24 overtime victory over the division rival Eagles in week two. Manning threw for a career high 371 yards in the win and tossed three touchdowns including the game winner to Plaxico Burress in overtime. Following a poor team performance against Seattle, Manning and the Giants responded by winning five straight games including wins over the Redskins, Cowboys and Falcons to run their record to 6-2. Following the winning streak, key injuries including one to receiver Amani Toomer began Manning's swoon. Against the Bears, he was held to only 141 yards passing and two interceptions. He struggled the next week at Jacksonville and a costly interception helped to culminate a huge collapse at Tennessee, with the Giants losing a 21-point fourth quarter lead. Manning improved the following week against the Cowboys, throwing for 270 yards and two touchdowns, but the Giants lost again. Regaining momentum, he threw three touchdowns in a win at Carolina, but then stumbled badly in the final three games. He threw two interceptions against the Eagles and tallied only 73 passing yards in a game against the Saints. Although the Giants battled back to 8-8 the following week at Washington, Manning completed only 12 of 26 passes for 101 yards and one touchdown. The Giants qualified for the postseason and met the Eagles again. Although he was significantly better this time around as compared to the 2005 showing, completing 16 of 27 passes and two touchdowns, the Giants lost on a last second field goal. For the year, Manning threw for 3,244 yards, 24 touchdowns and 18 interceptions. He completed 57.7 percent of his passes, a five point improvement from 2005, but again, struggled badly in the second half of the season. Adding that coach Tom Coughlin will return for the 2007 campaign and given that Tiki Barber has officially retired, it will be up to Manning to lead the Giants.
April 6, 2008
Eli Manning and Abby McGrew were spotted at the Manhattan Municipal Building apparently picking up a marriage license Tuesday. Tom McGrew, Abby's father, confirmed the pair's upcoming nuptials when reached at his Tennessee home by The New York Post, saying, "It's toward the end of April. It's private." Born January 3, 1981 in New Orleans, Louisiana, Eli is the younger brother of the Indianapolis Colts quarterback Peyton Manning. For his efforts, Manning was named the Most Valuable Player of Super Bowl XLII. He and his brother Peyton are the only brother combination to play at quarterback in the Super Bowl and the only set of brothers to win Super Bowl MVP, doing so in successive years. Manning, 27, proposed to McGrew, 24, in March 2007, less than a year before he threw the game-winning touchdown pass to Plaxico Burress in the final seconds of the Super Bowl against the New England Patriots to earn himself the Most Valuable Player award. The lovebirds have been inseparable since they were students together at the University of Mississippi.
McGrew's
main passion is fashion. When not rooting for the Giants, she is an
account executive with wedding-dress and evening-wear designer Pamela Roland. Giants' Eli Manning married in Mexico BY JO PIAZZA DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER Saturday, April 19th 2008
Giants
quarterback Eli Manning wed his college sweetheart Abby McGrew during
a beachfront ceremony at sunset Saturday. About 60 loved ones flew to Mexico to join Manning and his bride for the intimate ceremony at the One&Only Palmilla, a swank resort along the Sea of Cortez on the Baja Peninsula. Manning, 27, and McGrew, 24, exchanged vows while standing on a platform in the sand as waves crashed over rocks behind them. The bride, carrying a bouquet of white roses, made her entrance through a wrough-iron gate and walked down the aisle to an altar covered in pink wildflowers. McGrew looked splendid in a strapless white gown with gold embroidering and a large bow and short train in the back.
Her six
bridesmaids wore simple champagne-colored strapless dresses.
Manning
and his six groomsmen wore khaki suits with open collar white
button-down shirts and white roses in their lapels. The groomsmen
went tieless, but Manning wore a blue-and-white-striped tie. Moments before the ceremony, Peyton, star quarterback for the Indianapolis Colts, slung his arm around his brother and whispered words of encouragement in his ear. Guests were ferried to the beach in golf carts and were served white wine, Veuve Cliquot champagne and sparkling water by white tuxedoed waiters as they filed into white folding chairs decorated with gold ribbons. A trio - a guitarist, violinist and cellist - played the wedding march. "Welcome to one of the most beautful weddings I have ever presided over," the minister said, opening the ceremony. The quarterback and his gal smiled and giggled throughout the 16 minute ceremony. As the minister talked about joining the couple's hands in marriage, he looked down at the Giant's mitts. "These hands," he quipped, "are quite large." After the ceremony, guests enjoyed cocktails beachside with appetizers and a full bar laid out on tables adorned with pink tablecloths and roses. As the wedding party posed for pictures at the altar, McGrew fussed with Manning's hair and kised him on the lips. Some guests estimated the wedding cost Manning around $500,000, a modest sum compared to most celebrity weddings. Hours before the ceremony, Manning worked out pre-wedding jitters, hitting the gym by 10 a.m., running furiously on the treadmill, lifting weights and doing push-ups for an hour and-and-a-half. During the rest of the day, the Super Bowl MVP and his bride stood by the old adage that the groom not see the bride the day of the wedding. They split their crew into two groups, with McGrew sunning herself on the resort's Vista Pool and Manning joining his brothers Peyton and Cooper and their pals at another pool across the grounds. Manning wore an orange ballcap and sunglasses at his bride's suggestion so he wouldn't get more sunburned. While the pals kept the beers flowing, Manning drank water and floated on an inner-tube in the middle of his friends. And Peyton held court, telling jokes and stories about his baby brother from back home and his days at the University of Mississippi, while the crowd roared with laughter. The guys finally left the pool around 4 p.m., about two hours before the wedding ceremony, after the wedding planner coaxed them out of the water. As brides tend to do, McGrew had started getting ready much earlier, working on her hair and makeup regimen indoors with her bridesmaids around 2 pm. Manning's parents, Archie and Olivia Manning, were overjoyed to see their youngest son get hitched. Archie gave a heartfelt toast Friday night before a rehearsal dinner in front of the resort's old Spanish Mission Chapel, getting tears in his eyes as he raised his glass. Manning and McGrew met when they were students at Ole Miss. He proposed last March during a quiet date in Hoboken. The couple is famously low-key and kept their wedding plans under wraps until just last week. Wedding guests remarked all weekend about how relaxed Manning had made the celebration for all of them. The bride and groom chose the ultra exclusive resort to celebrate their wedding after vacationing here several times. They plan to spend another week honeymooning at the resort.
This website is an unofficial source of news and information continually updated from thousands of sources around the net. A fan based site dedicated to the Indianapolis Colts and its fans and is not associated with the Indianapolis Colts, the National Football League, any school, team or league or any other media site. This website is the composition of many hours of research. Information contained within this site has come from numerous sources such as websites, newspapers, books, and magazines. Please take the time to visit the Source page to get a semi-complete listing of these sources, articles, sites and fans.
Pictures and logos, team names are property of
the National Football League and/or The Indianapolis Colts.
|
|||||||||
