Before Eli Manning threw two touchdown passes in the final five minutes to lead the Giants to a comeback victory over the Cowboys Sunday, DeMarcus Ware had already praised the Giants quarterback. In an interview with Sunday Night Football, Ware called Eli a “sleeper” who is in the same category as Peyton and Tom Brady. The Cowboys linebacker feels like the only thing Eli is missing is the same hype.
“Eli Manning is a sleeper,” he told Michelle Tafoya. “He’s one of those guys where he’s up there with Tom Brady or Peyton Manning, he just doesn’t have that aura of those quarterbacks.
“When I was looking at the stats, he’s right up there with those quarterbacks. When it’s crunch time, the fourth quarter, that’s when he’s making his plays and getting his teams wins.
“He’s up there with those elite quarterbacks, they’re just not giving him his credit,” Ware said.
Ware’s comments foreshadowed Sunday’s finish. Eli made big plays in the fourth quarter to lead the Giants to a comeback win. I still don’t think Eli Manning is in the same class of quarterbacks as Aaron Rodgers, Drew Brees, and Tom Brady, but he’s extremely capable, and he’s in a class below them, despite what he feels.
Here’s a video of the clip from the interview:
