Eli Manning Voices Hot Take on Injured Daniel Jones

Eli Manning says Giants should play Daniel Jones

Getty Eli Manning #10 and Daniel Jones #8.

The New York Giants are set to take on the Cleveland Browns this Sunday night as the team looks to keep their playoff hopes alive. However, they will unfortunately not have the services of their starting quarterback, Daniel Jones, at their disposal.

Instead, the Giants will reportedly once again go with veteran backup Colt McCoy under center, per ESPN’s Jordan Raanan. Jones, who was officially listed as questionable on Friday, has been dealing with both hamstring and ankle injuries after he sustained a second “lower leg” injury in his return to Big Blue’s lineup this past weekend, a 26-7 loss to the Cardinals. 

Prior to word breaking of Jones’ status for Sunday, the quarterback’s ex-teammate and future Hall of Famer, Eli Manning, decided to weigh in on the situation.

Manning, a former 16-year pro, knows a thing or two about gutting it out on the gridiron despite a few ailments. Hell, this is a guy who saw his consecutive regular-season games streak of 210 starts (third-most all-time) end only due to an inept decision at the hands of a certain mustached coach we shall not speak of.

The two-time Super Bowl Champion took to Twitter to voice his opinion, pleading for the Giants to “Let DJ play!”

ALL the latest Giants news straight to your inbox! Subscribe to the Heavy on Giants newsletter here!

Sign up for the Heavy on Giants Newsletter!


Coach Judge Continues to Show Faith in Colt McCoy

Colt McCoy will now make his second start in three games for the Giants. The 11-year pro notably helped the Giants knock off the Seattle Seahawks in a shocking 17-12 upset back in Week 13. While his stat line may have left much to be desired (13/22, 105 passing yards, one touchdown, one interception) his ability to remain under control in less than ideal circumstances has clearly won over his head coach.

“I think he did a lot of things well,” Joe Judge said McCoy’s performance against Seattle. “First off, I love the way he just controlled the flow of the game, the tempo of the game. Colt was on the line of scrimmage, identifying what the defense was in, putting us in the right place, made some big plays for us down the stretch with some key completions to continue drives. He did a good job when he had to go ahead and check from a run to a pass or vice versa. I thought just his experience really showed up in that game.”

“The biggest thing he’s very good at is Colt’s a very positive guy,” Judge said. “He’s a competitor and he’s a very positive guy. He understands the flow of we’re always getting ready for a 60-minute game. If things aren’t going well initially, you’re never going to hear him complain or tap out. He’s very committed to the process. Any adjustments you have to make, Colt’s a smart dude. He’s always in tune to talking on the sideline about, ‘Hey, what do you guys think about maybe changing this up?’ or ‘Do you want to stick with this?’ He may come back and say, ‘Hey, I like this play, call it again.’ Colt’s very, very mentally into the game. That carries over and really gets the rest of the guys involved as well.”

Follow the Heavy on Giants Facebook page for all the latest stories, rumors and viral content!

McCoy’s Revenge Game

Sunday night will mark McCoy’s 30th start of his career. The 34-year-old will look to notch his ninth-career victory as a starter against the team that originally drafted him. The Browns selected McCoy in the third round (85th overall pick) of the 2010 NFL Draft. He would go on to start 21 of 24 games over his three-year tenure in Cleveland, throwing for 4,388 yards, 21 touchdowns and 20 interceptions.

He was ultimately tossed aside for former first-rounder Brandon Weeden. McCoy would serve as Weeden’s primary backup in 2012 prior to being traded to the San Francisco 49ers that following offseason. 

READ NEXT

For more Giants content, follow @VinnySomma on Twitter.