Eli Manning Set to Announce Retirement

The day that New York Giants fans had anticipated more in recent years has arrived, but they will soon appreciate what they will miss in the future.

Eli Manning will announce his retirement from football on Friday in a press conference at the Quest Diagnostics Training Center at the Meadowlands. After a 16-year career where he won two Super Bowls and won MVP in both of those games, Manning will put an end to one of the most impressive eras in New York Giants history. Manning became the face of the Giants, and while he finished with a 117-117 record, he will be remembered for his clutch ability, especially in the playoffs. Once he was in the playoffs, he led the team throughout both Super Bowl runs, especially during 2007 when the Giants finished with a 9-7 record.

Manning was not the perfect quarterback by any standards, but he still was able to find a way to win when his team needed to. Granted, the Giants did have losing seasons during Manning’s career, but he still always fought hard. His resilience will be a trait that defined his career, and it also led the Giants to beat the Patriots in both Super Bowls. Plus, Manning carried himself with the utmost class and never spoke out or caused a distraction, and grew to be a fan favorite among Giants fans and the NFL. Those traits made Manning’s career a memorable one.

While the Giants and their fans will remember Eli’s good times with Big Blue, the recent years were less memorable, and the Giants were already planning their future post-Eli. The style of the NFL had changed since Manning was first drafted, and mobile quarterbacks became more prevalent, which made quarterbacks that were strictly pocket passers out of date. Therefore, Eli struggled more, and he eventually was benched in 2019 for rookie quarterback Daniel Jones.

The Giants are now bracing for their future, but until the Giants establish themselves as a winning team, they will realize how well off they were with Manning at quarterback. He was a reliable presence since he became their quarterback, and had a streak of 210 consecutive games started, until Week 13 of 2017. While his talent diminished towards the end of his career, and there were numerous factors, such as the lack of offensive line, and the change of gameplay. However, the key reason why he declined was that he was getting older, and that is basically what happens to great quarterbacks when their career progresses.

Overall, Eli Manning will be remembered forever for the two Super Bowls he won and also for being the face of the Giants and being a solid presence in his 16-year career.