While Week 11 didn't exactly simplify the playoff picture, it did leave one fact crystal clear: At the very least, Eli Manning will be a good NFL quarterback one day. At the most, he'll be his brother.
Wait just a minute, the kid (and he really is just a kid) has started one NFL game. Is anything actually revealed after one game? This is a valid point. A million different things could happen to derail Eli's path to stardom. New York is the toughest place in the world to play and has stolen away many a promising career.
But all signs thus far have pointed to a fairly well-grounded guy, so let's just assume that Eli doesn't crack up. Looking at yesterday's game against the Atlanta Falcons, Manning was 17 of 37 for 132 yards with a touchdown pass and two picks', and Manning's New York Giants lost 14-10. Not exactly thrilling. But since "Inside the NFL" gets paid the big bucks to look behind the numbers, this is what you missed if you didn't watch the game:
Either Jeremy Shockey and Amani Toomer developed some weird undying loyalty to Kurt Warner, or they were both on the take on Sunday. The two combined to drop nearly 10 balls. Put some flesh back on those hands and Eli's 27 for 37 with 230 yards. In addition, the drops themselves show something about the incredible ball that Manning throws.
After getting used to Warner's telegraphed lob jobs, Toomer often couldn't snap his head around quick enough for Lil' Peyton's passes, which were generally thrown hard, accurately and right on the break.
As a side note, this is one of those tiny differences between a 10-6 playoff team and a 9-7 just-missed-the-cut team. In close, important games with a rookie quarterback starting, playoff team receivers raise the level of their game - they don't drop it, no pun intended.
And Manning showed definite flashes of brilliance: His touchdown pass to Shockey was thrown around three defenders and on a frozen rope. On one play, he evaded a potent Falcons pass rush, moved outside of the pocket, drew forward the flat defender and then lobbed a first down pass to Tiki Barber.
Not to mention the fact that Atlanta boasts one of the best defenses in the league, especially when defensive lineman Rod Coleman is playing, which he was. Manning looked poised and comfortable in the pocket, despite offensive line work by the Giants that was only slightly less miserable than usual.
All of this is fun for Giants fans, but it might have an implication for the NFC playoff picture as well. If Manning can pull a Rothelisberger and continue to improve, and the St. Louis Rams continue to play the kind of football they did in their loss to the Buffalo Bills, then the Giants could very easily win the sixth playoff spot with a 9-7 record.
Swinging to another branch of the Manning family tree, Peyton is ... well, there is no appropriate adjective to describe Peyton Manning's current level of play. Yes, you have to win a Super Bowl to be great, and he hasn't, and won't this year unless the Indianapolis Colts' defense steps up. But Manning running that offense is beautiful. Downright hypnotic. Right now, Peyton's on pace to smash Dan Marino's single season touchdown record of 48.
If the offense continues at that rate and the defense gets just a little bit better, there's no reason why Indy can't run the table. The problem is that unless they win out, the Colts are going to have to play a round 2 playoff game on the road against either the Pittsburgh Steelers or the New England Patriots, both coming off bye weeks.
Looking at the rest of the AFC, here are some quick picks to finish off last week's playoff predictions: The Pats, Steelers, Colts, and Broncos look like the safest bets to make it, in that order, leaving the Jacksonville Jaguars, San Diego Chargers, New York Jets and Baltimore Ravens to fight over the remaining two spots. 11-5 might be necessary to make it in the AFC this year.
The Jacksonville Jaguars have an incredibly difficult remaining schedule and may have lost their ticket to the dance when they got upset by the Tennessee Titans this week. They're out.
This leaves at least one 7-3 team not to make it. The Ravens looked miserable in their win over the Dallas Cowboys. They face road games against New England, Indy, and Pittsburgh. It will be tough for the Jets to make it also, and the decision's almost 50/50, but in any 50/50 decision one would do well to abide by the following maxim: Always, always, always bet against Kyle Boller.<$>
