Former New York Giants GM Ernie Accorsi wants to see Eli Manning retire as a member of the team and not wear another uniform.
Last week, the New York Giants faithful got an opportunity to say goodbye to Eli Manning and gave him a standing ovation as he took what appears to be his last snap as the Giants’ quarterback.
But, like most competitors, Manning wants to go out on his own terms and if this wasn’t how he envisioned his exit from the game, he could opt to continue his career elsewhere should the opportunity arise.
Ernie Accorsi, the former Giants general manager who brought Manning to New York in the famous draft day gambit back in 2004, would like nothing more than to see Eli finish his career with the Giants.
Speaking on a local radio program on Wednesday, Accorsi, a former Baltimore Colts general manager, recalled the sad ending of one of his heroes, Johnny Unitas, who ended his career with the San Diego Chargers.
“It broke my heart to see John Unitas in a San Diego Charger uniform,” Accorsi tolf WFAN after being asked about Manning’s future, but said he wouldn’t be surprised if Eli did move on to a new destination much his brother Peyton did.
“The one thing … about these guys that are able to be successful at the highest level, particularly a quarterback in football, is that whole makeup that they have. Sure, they have talent, and sure, they have ability, but that makeup that is the difference maker between the good ones and the great ones that win championships, all that, that doesn’t go away because Father Time catches up with you. You still have that, and you still do believe that.”
That being said, Eli would not be doing this for the money. He’s already the richest NFL player ever. Then there would have to be the right situation and team for him to land with. At the moment, his options seem very limited. The consensus is he’ll likely retire.
If you watched Drew Brees’ record-breaking performance on Monday Night Football – and, realistically, even if you didn’t – you know who the NFL’s top two (well, probably top three) quarterbacks are when it comes to all-time touchdown passes. But can …
If you watched Drew Brees’ record-breaking performance on Monday Night Football — and, realistically, even if you didn’t — you know who the NFL’s top two (well, probably top three) quarterbacks are when it comes to all-time touchdown passes.
But can you correctly name QBs No. 4 through No. 10?
Find out.
(Stats, as of Monday, Dec. 18, 2019, courtesy of Pro Football Reference)
Previewing Sunday’s New York Giants at Washington Redskins sports betting odds and lines, with Week 16 NFL betting picks, tips and best bets.
The New York Giants (3-11) visit the NFC East-rival Washington Redskins (3-11) Sunday of Week 16 for a 1 p.m. ET kickoff at FedEx Field. We analyze the Giants-Redskins odds and sports betting lines, while providing sports betting tips and advice on this matchup.
Giants at Redskins: Week 16 preview, betting trends and notes
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The Giants snapped a nine-game losing streak with their 36-20 home win over the Miami Dolphins in Week 15. Before that, their last win was by a 24-3 score over the Redskins in Week 4.
The Redskins have dropped two in a row after winning back-to-back games for the first time all year in Weeks 12 and 13. They fell by a 37-27 decision at home against the rival Philadelphia Eagles last week.
Washington ranks 31st in the NFL with just 15.4 points per game on offense. It averages a league-low 274.1 total yards of offense per game.
New York ranks 23rd in points per game (20.2) and 25th by yards per game (319.1).
The Redskins allow 24.8 PPG to the Giants’ 27.3. New York gives up 376.9 YPG to 363.8 for Washington.
The Giants have the third-worst turnover differential in the league at minus-15. The Redskins are plus-2 with 21 takeaways and 19 giveaways.
Redskins RB Adrian Petersonneeds another 168 rushing yards over the final two weeks of the season to pass Barry Sanders for fourth on the all-time list. The Giants allow 115.1 rushing yards per game.
Giants QB Eli Manning was under center for the victory last week. It was his first win since Week 14 of last season (against Washington).
Giants at Redskins: Key injuries
Giants rookie QB Daniel Jones (ankle) could be shut down for the team’s final two games. TE Evan Engram (foot) hasn’t played since Week 9.
Giants at Redskins: Odds, betting lines and prediction
The GIANTS (+110) won the season’s first meeting 24-3 in New York with Jones under center. They’ll complete the season sweep and make it three straight over Washington going back to last season. New York is just 1-6 on the road, while Washington is 1-6 at home.
The G-Men are coming off a convincing victory while the Redskins let another one get away from them against the Eagles. Manning will be trying to get above .500 in what may be, again, his final start.
Stick with the moneyline and the outright win for the Giants rather than spotting them the +2.5 points and accepting a smaller payout with the -115 odds. Both teams are 6-8 against the spread for the season, but the Giants are 4-3 ATS on the road, while Washington is just 2-5 ATS at home.
New to sports betting? A $10 bet for the Giants to cover the spread of +2.5 and stay within 2 points in a loss, or win outright, returns a profit of $8.70 vs. a return of $11 for the moneyline bet.
Take the UNDER 42.5 (-110). The Redskins, who have little else to play for, should be intent on trying to feed Peterson the ball on the ground so he can pass Sanders. The Giants’ 36-point outburst last week is their highest point total of the season – they scored 32 in a one-point win vs. the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Week 3.
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Former New York Giants GM Ernie Accorsi watched Eli Manning say goodbye in Week 15 and did so with welling eyes.
The man who made Eli Manning a New York Giant wanted to see the player who defined his tenure as general manager go out a winner.
Last Sunday, former Giants GM Ernie Accorsi decided to watch Manning start his final home game in blue from his couch. He had a good feeling that the future Pro Football Hall of Famer would put in a solid farewell performance against the below average Miami Dolphins defense.
“First of all, I don’t know what’s going to happen but I wanted him so badly to finish with a good game,” Accorsi said, via the New York Post. “You know me and sports history. To me, it’s always Ted Williams, hit a home run and goodbye. You always want to see something like that for a player who’s meant so much to his franchise.’”
Manning completed 20 of 28 passes for 283 yards with two touchdowns and three interceptions. When the Giants decided to stop the game to give the fans an opportunity to give Eli his due late in the game, even the stoic Accorsi felt some emotion.
“It’s funny,” Accorsi said. “Everybody stereotypes you. I’m an Italian but I’m not an emotional guy. I don’t cry at funerals. I don’t cry. That doesn’t mean I don’t feel terrible about things but I’m not a crier, never have been. But I have to say I welled up when they cheered him off the field. I just felt so good he was able to get that, if that was his last game, that he was able to finish his career, at home at least, that way. Winning the game, which means the most to him anyway.
“I felt pretty nostalgic. This guy deserved that, because he had really been quite a soldier here.
“This guy shows up, controversial trade, goes to work, doesn’t ever embarrass the organization, shows up, plays every game, wins two championships, gets benched twice and never changes, never does anything to react to that and now he can walk away with class. What more can you ask when you go out and draft a player?”
It’s all over for both Manning and Accorsi here with the Giants and that is unfortunate. The Giants won’t be in such steady hands going forward unless the owners change their ways and start modernizing the way they do business.
The Giants are truly at the end of an era with a lot of unknowns in front of them and a fan base that is getting antsy after six losing seasons over the last seven years.
The New York Giants and Eli Manning enter Week 16 limbo and are completely at the mercy of Daniel Jones’ ankle.
New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning is a gamer and despite a magical MetLife Stadium sendoff on Sunday, he’s itching for another start and hoping he gets it in Week 16 against the Washington Redskins.
“Yeah, of course. Of course I’d like to,” Manning said when asked if he’d like to start against Washington. “I know Daniel’s getting close to getting ready and getting better. We’ll see what his status is. I get it either way. I know they want to get him back and get him more experience and more reps and everything. Whatever I’m asked to do, I’ll do it.”
Given the way Manning was able to say goodbye, not to mention evening his all-time regular season record at 117-117, it would seem almost unfair to strip that away. But should Jones be unable to go in Week 16, head coach Pat Shurmur has given no thought to playing Alex Tanney over Manning.
“Listen, if Daniel can’t go and Eli is our starter, we are going to go in with the idea that we’re going to put a winning performance on the field against Washington,” Shurmur said when asked about Tanney playing. “So yeah, I don’t know — I think that’s overthinking it a little bit.”
And just how close is Jones to returning?
“We’ll just have to see,” Shurmur said on Monday. “Even though this is what they call a victory Monday, there’s a lot of players in the building today getting weight training, treatment and studying tape. We’ll just push him along like we did last week. We started the week with the idea that he might be ready to play, and we’ll do the same this week.”
The Giants were wary of Manning’s .500 record earlier this season, so don’t for a second think they won’t consider that this week. And given the sendoff he received, it would be a legitimate shock if we saw Manning under center on Sunday in Washington and not Jones.
The NFC East doesn’t have a team with a winning record, but it’s the most compelling division in Touchdown Wire’s weekly Power Rankings.
The NFC East is the worst division in the NFL. It also is the most entertaining.
Even though no team in the division currently has a winning record, the playoff scenario got more intriguing in Week 15. Plus, there’s all sorts of speculation about which head coaches might be fired, and a New York icon may have played his last game for the Giants.
The Cowboys finally played the way a team with that much talent is supposed to play, improving to 7-7 with a 44-21 shellacking of the Los Angeles Rams. The Eagles also climbed to 7-7 after a 37-27 win over the Redskins. Dallas plays at Philadelphia in Week 16, and the Cowboys can clinch the division title with a victory.
Even though the Cowboys are in the playoff race, coach Jason Garrett’s job doesn’t appear safe. Rumors are swirling that owner Jerry Jones is considering Urban Meyer as a replacement for Garrett.
Things got even more interesting when Meyer showed up at the Redskins game on Sunday. Can you imagine a bidding war for Meyer between Jones and Washington owner Daniel Snyder?
New York Giants coach Pat Shurmur also could be on the hot seat, even though he got a win against Miami. But Shurmur wasn’t the Giants’ most interesting story of Sunday. Instead, that was Eli Manning. The veteran quarterback played what might have been his final game for the Giants, while filling in for injured rookie Daniel Jones.
Here’s where the NFC East teams — and the rest of the league — stand in Touchdown Wire’s Week 16 Power Rankings.
32. Cincinnati Bengals
David Kohl-USA TODAY Sports
(1-13. Last week: 32)
A 34-14 loss to New England was expected, but the Bengals actually kept the game close until the third quarter. But in the end, they lost to one of the league’s best teams. More importantly, the Bengals remained on pace to earn the top pick in next year’s draft. That means it appears as if newly crowned Heisman Trophy winner Joe Burrow will wear a Cincinnati uniform next season. After briefly benching veteran starter Andy Dalton in favor of rookie Ryan Finley, the Bengals have been sticking with Dalton. That’s somewhat inexplicable, because Dalton threw four interceptions Sunday. Dalton has no future with the Bengals. But he’s doing his part to make sure Cincinnati gets Burrow.
31. Washington Redskins
Brad Mills-USA TODAY Sports
(3-11. Last week: 30)
The Redskins lost to Philadelphia, 37-27. The game meant nothing to the Redskins aside from impacting their draft position. The real story here is that Urban Meyer was spotted in a luxury box at FedEx Field with injured Washington quarterback Alex Smith, who played for Meyer at the University of Utah. Let the speculation grow that Meyer, who won national championships at Florida and Ohio State will be the next coach of the Redskins. Of course, current Redskins quarterback Dwayne Haskins also played for Meyer, at Ohio State. Meyer’s sighting could foreshadow an off-field showdown in the NFC East. There is widespread speculation that Dallas owner Jerry Jones covets Meyer. Given the personalities and egos of Jones and Washington owner Daniel Snyder, there could be a bidding war for Meyer.
30. Miami Dolphins
Vincent Carchietta-USA TODAY Sports
(3-11. Last week: 29)
The only real highlight of Sunday’s 36-20 loss to the Giants was that it likely was Eli Manning’s final start for New York. Injured rookie Daniel Jones is expected back in the lineup next week, and Manning probably will retire or play for another franchise next year. But there were a few bright spots for the Dolphins, too. Quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick and receiver DeVante Parker hooked up on two touchdown passes. More significantly, the loss keeps the Dolphins in the race for an early draft pick, where they can seek a long-term answer at quarterback — because there is no long-term future with Fitzpatrick or backup Josh Rosen.
29. Detroit Lions
Tim Fuller-USA TODAY Sports
(3-10-1. Last week: 28)
The Lions lost 37-17 to Tampa Bay on Sunday. That means they now have suffered 10 losses in consecutive years with Matt Patricia as coach. They also ran their losing streak to seven games. Does all that mean Patricia is on the hot seat? There are two ways to look at it. First, Patricia’s record in Detroit (9-20-1) has been unimpressive, and coaches have been fired for less. The fan base probably wouldn’t be too upset if Patricia gets canned. But on the flip side, Patricia still has his team playing hard even though the Lions are down to third-string quarterback David Blough and are dealing with a rash of injuries. For the sake of continuity, I would give Patricia one more season.
28. New York Giants
Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports
(3-11. Last week: 31)
A 36-20 victory against the Miami Dolphins may not seem like much. But there was a big storyline for the history of New York’s franchise. This almost certainly was the last start of Eli Manning’s tenure with the Giants, as he threw for two touchdowns and Saquon Barkley ran for two more. Daniel Jones is New York’s quarterback of the future. Jones has been out with an ankle injury, and that’s the only reason Manning has been back as the starter. But Jones returned to practice on a limited basis last week and is expected to return as the starter for the final two games of the season. This win was important for Manning, who could decide to retire after the season. It got his career record back to .500. Manning is a borderline Hall of Famer. A .500 record sounds a lot better than a losing record to Hall of Fame voters.
27. Jacksonville Jaguars
Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
(5-9. Last week: 27)
The Jaguars went to California and beat the Raiders in their final game in Oakland before moving to Las Vegas next season. But the win doesn’t mean all that much in the grand scheme of things. Prior to the game, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported that significant changes will be made in Jacksonville in the offseason. That could mean coach Doug Marrone, executive vice president of football operations Tom Coughlin and general manager Dave Caldwell are on the hot seat. Any or all of them could be gone after two disappointing seasons since a berth in the AFC Championship Game. The other big question in Jacksonville is who will be the quarterback next season. Rookie Gardner Minshew has outplayed the high-priced Nick Foles. Minshew has earned the right to at least compete with Foles in the preseason.
26. New York Jets
Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports
(5-9. Last week: 24)
Thursday night’s game against Baltimore went exactly as expected. Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson, the likely NFL Most Valuable Player, threw for 212 yards and five touchdowns and also ran for 86 yards. That’s no surprise, since Jackson has put up huge numbers all season. What is surprising, and concerning, is that the Jets suddenly seem to be a team in turmoil. During Sunday’s game, coach Adam Gase and quarterback Sam Darnold had a heated exchange on the sideline. They downplayed the incident after the game, but it still wasn’t a good sign. Running back Le’Veon Bell, the source of controversy in Week 14 when he supposedly missed the game with the flu but was seen bowling the previous night, returned and rushed for a season-high 87 yards. Maybe Bell should go bowling more often. The Jets also clinched their fourth straight losing season. That’s their longest such streak in the Super Bowl era.
25. Carolina Panthers
Jeremy Brevard-USA TODAY Sports
(5-9. Last week 23)
On the surface, a 30-24 loss to Seattle isn’t embarrassing. The Seahawks are one of the best teams in the NFL, after all. But this one was embarrassing when you look at it from another perspective. The Panthers now are 2-5 at home this season. That’s embarrassing because the Panthers have good fans, and Bank of America Stadium has given the team a home-field advantage in the past. But the Panthers have lost six games in a row, and their future has more questions than answers. Will Kyle Allen, who threw three interceptions Sunday, be the starter next year? Or will it be longtime franchise quarterback Cam Newton? The bigger question is who will be the coach next year? Don’t be surprised if Urban Meyer’s name surfaces. Carolina owner David Tepper has the funds and the desire to compete with the big boys — Dallas’ Jerry Jones and Washington’s Daniel Snyder — for Meyer’s services.
Drew Brees led the way with a great performance in Week 15 of the NFL season.
The 15th week of the NFL season saw Drew Brees continue to break records and plenty of stat sheets filled up.
Arizona Cardinals: Kenyan Drake
AP Photo/Rick Scuteri
Kenyan Drake has had a couple of big games for Arizona. The one Sunday against Cleveland was enormous. The running back acquired from Miami during the season had 137 yards rushing and scored 4 touchdowns as the Cardinals broke a losing streak.
