After two straight years of New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning essentially being thrown under the bus with little defense, general manager Dave Gettleman and head coach Pat Shurmur have come in and begun reversing that course.
Despite the continued onslaught against the organization for sticking with Manning, which has included shots at co-owners John Mara and Steve Tisch, Gettleman and Shurmur haven’t wavered. And now, that leadership is beginning to trick down the roster.
Running back Saquon Barkley recently expressed his disgust in the way Manning is portrayed publicly and on Tuesday, tight end Evan Engram followed suit.
“Eli is still going to be Eli. We need to be better as a team sometimes and play more complimentary football,” Engram said during an appearance on NFL Network. “When he’s protected and we have a great gameplan in, he can still make every throw and can still drive the ball down the field. He’s shown that and he showed that the second half of [last] season. We started competing more often and making more big plays and scoring a lot more points.”
Asked more specifically if he agreed with Gettleman’s belief that the Manning narrative is a “crock,” Engram said he did.
“[Gettleman’s] not lying when he says that and I can’t wait to get back to work with [Manning],” Engram added.
With Odell Beckham Jr. out of the picture and other distractions also having been removed from the locker-room, this sort of defense of Manning is likely to pick up. And while it’s a shame it’s taken this long, it’s better late than never.
