Eli Manning says he's 'fine' with the Giants potentially drafting a quarterback

Manning is now 36 years old and likely knows the end of his career is closer than the beginning

By Jared Dubin

Apr 7, 2017 at 9:43 am ET • 2 min read

Since nine games into the 2003 NFL season, there has only been one player to start at quarterback for the New York Giants. Eli Manning has suited up every single week since taking over for Kurt Warner midway through his rookie season, making 199 consecutive starts for Big Blue. Manning figures to remain the Giants’ starter for the foreseeable future, but at 36 years old, both he and the team have to know that it’s time to start thinking about an eventual replacement for a few years down the line.

Giants coach Ben McAdoo has already sung the praises of new backup QB Geno Smith, saying that he “can’t see why not” when asked if Smith could eventually take over for Manning. This week, Manning himself was asked about some recent rumors that the Giants might select a successor early in this year’s draft.

“Whoever they need to draft that’s going to help out the team, whether it’s this year or going forward, I’m fine,’’ Manning said, per the New York Post. “We drafted a quarterback four years ago, Ryan Nassib, I know that’s part of it, quarterbacks are going to get drafted. I got my job to do, I’m going to go out there and do it. Ownership and management have their job, to draft the best players and looking forward to the future, I understand that’s part of it.’’

It’s an understandable position for Manning to take. His position on the team and in the lineup is secure, especially given his sparkling record of health. But he knows the end of his career is closer than the beginning, and that it’s always better for an organization to have a succession plan in place rather than end up scrambling for a solution when a franchise passer moves on.

The Giants, like other teams, saw the benefit of drafting a quarterback behind an established star -- even if it’s not immediately clear that he’ll be ready to play -- when the Cowboys moved somewhat seamlessly from the Tony Romo era to the Dak Prescott era. (Or when the Green Bay Packers drafted Aaron Rodgers behind Brett Favre back in the day.)

Manning is now the same age as Romo was when the Cowboys drafted Prescott last offseason, and though he’s likely to last longer than Romo did after his replacement was drafted, that doesn’t mean it wouldn’t be a prudent move to try to find that player anyway.