Manning's Teammates Vowed to "Send Him Out on the Right Note"

With this potentially being the end of Eli Manning's tenure with the Giant, his teammates wanted to make sure they sent him off with the best possible outcome.

Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports

Although the game means nothing in a season gone south, Giants quarterback Eli Manning desperately wanted the win for his teammates’ morale.

But just as importantly, his teammates wanted to make sure that if this was indeed Manning’s swan song, that they got the win for the veteran signal caller’s morale.

Since his demotion following a Week 2 loss to the Buffalo Bills, Manning has kept his feelings to himself about the state of the franchise. He even disappeared from the public eye; the only times he’s been spotted by people outside of the organization is at the part of practice open to reporters and during games.

Not this week, though, thanks to Jones’ high ankle sprain, which cost him a second game. This week Manning got the start, perhaps his last one in front of the home crowd as a Giant, and for as much as he wanted to win this game for his teammates, they might have wanted it even more for Manning.

“Yeah. Saquon (Barkley) and I looked at each other right when we were going out for the first series, and we said, ‘Let’s send him out on the right note, do everything in our power,’” receiver Sterling Shepard said. “It was a little shaky in the first half, but we were able to click and get things rolling that second half.”

“If that is his last game and that’s the way we send Eli off, then that’s the way we envisioned doing,” Barkley added. “I know I wanted to go out there and play my tail off, and I know those guys wanted to do the same too for #10. He’s meant so much to this city and this franchise for such a long time. He’s a special person and a special player. If that is the way he gets sent off, I’m glad we were able to do it in a win and do it in that fashion.”

Both Shepard and Barkley saved their respective best performances for Manning’s potential swan song. Barkley recorded a season-high 143 scrimmage yards, which included his first 100-yard rushing performance since Week 2 before the Daniel Jones era was launched.

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And Shepard, who’s missed six games this season while dealing with concussions, delivered his best performance of the year, recording 111 receiving yards on nine receptions, both season highs.

They weren’t alone though in playing their best ball. The offensive line, missing starting right guard Kevin Zeitler, blocked and protected Manning. 

And rookie receiver Darius Slayton, who looks as though he’s played with Manning for two years instead of just two games, recorded his third touchdown in two games, his score potentially being Manning’s last one thrown as a Giant.

“It’s probably something I won’t be able to appreciate until I get older and look back fully," Slayton said, "but it’s definitely a special thing for me.

“Just being a young guy, a rookie at that, playing with a Hall of Fame quarterback, getting to see something like that, it was a lot of fun.”

Like Shepard, Barkley and the rest of the Giants, the goal was to send Manning off the right way.

“Definitely. I mean, we knew coming out this game that we wanted to send him out the right way. Right when we were out of the tunnel, (injured reserve receiver) Russell Shepard, one of our guys, he just was saying you want to send your quarterback out the right way. Just fight hard for him.

“Obviously we go out there and fight for our brothers every day, but especially someone like him that’s put in all the work and time and effort, we wanted to have a special day for him.”

That they were able to do so for Manning created goosebumps for these gridiron warriors, who were only too happy to lay it all on the line for their leader in a game that might not mean anything in the grand scheme of things, but which was one of the most important ones they’ve played.

“He’s done so much,” Shepard said of Manning. “(Former wide receiver now director of player development) David Tyree and I were talking about it on the sideline. He was saying, ‘Eli has a piece of all of us, and it’s just a special day.’ We were able to get this win for him and send him out on the right note, and it’s a blessing.”