Eli Manning
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Elisha Nelson Manning (born January 3, 1981 in New Orleans, Louisiana) is an American football quarterback for the New York Giants NFL franchise.
Eli Manning, who played college football at the University of Mississippi, was considered to be the top prospect prior to the 2004 NFL Draft and became a source of controversy and speculation for adamantly stating that he would not play for the San Diego Chargers, who owned the first pick in the draft. Despite this the Chargers went ahead and drafted Manning with the first pick, but traded him shortly thereafter to the New York Giants for their first round pick (4th overall), N.C. State quarterback Philip Rivers.
Manning began the season as the backup quarterback for the Giants, behind two-time league MVP Kurt Warner, who the Giants signed in 2004 shortly after he was released for salary cap reasons by the St. Louis Rams. Manning's first regular-season NFL play was in the first week of the 2004 football season, taking over for Warner with three minutes left in the game as the Giants were losing to the Philadelphia Eagles, 31-10. Manning handed the ball off to running back Tiki Barber, who ran 72 yards for a touchdown.
For the first nine games of the season, Manning only saw limited action, usually in mop-up operations towards the end of games. However, after Kurt Warner began to struggle midseason, losing three out of four games, Manning was given the start in a November 21 game against the Atlanta Falcons. After a rough first half, Manning threw his first touchdown pass in the second half, a 6-yard pass to Jeremy Shockey. However, the Giants ultimately lost the game, 14-10.
On January 2, 2005, Manning secured his first career NFL win with a three touchdown performance against the Dallas Cowboys.
Eli Manning is the son of former New Orleans Saints quarterback Archie Manning, and the younger brother of Indianapolis Colts quarterback Peyton Manning.
A business major, Manning was an Academic All-American and a member of Sigma Nu Fraternity.