Report: Eli Manning will announce retirement after 16 seasons

New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning will announce his retirement Friday after 16 seasons.

ESPN’s Dan Graziano reports Manning will hold a press conference to make it official.

Manning, 39, is the Giants’ all-time leader in completions (4,895), passing yards (57,023), and touchdowns (366). He will be best remembered for leading the Giants to victory in Super Bowls XLII and XLVI over the New England Patriots. He threw 15 touchdowns with just two interceptions during those championship runs. Seven of the eight games played in those Super Bowl runs were on the road.

Manning, the No. 1 pick in the 2004 NFL Draft by the then-San Diego Chargers, held the third-longest consecutive start streak for a quarterback in NFL history. He made 210 consecutive starts from Week 11 of the 2004 season until Week 13 of the 2017 season. Only Brett Favre and Phillip Rivers (the player he was traded for) started more consecutive games at the quarterback position.

In recent years, Manning’s production (and the team’s) began to decline. He had just 40 passing touchdowns combined in 2017 and 2018, with the Giants going 8-23. This is what caused the Giants to select Duke’s Daniel Jones with the No. 6 overall pick in the 2019 NFL Draft, although Manning continued to receive praise from the coaching staff and front office.

“I have said it since I got here, I am very fond of Eli,” former head coach Pat Shurmur said in an ESPN interview. “His work ethic, his preparation, his football intelligence. All those attributes are as good as I have ever seen in a player.”

The belief in Manning was short-lived. After opening 2019 with consecutive losses with No. 10 behind center, the Giants elevated Jones to the starter’s role. Manning looked visibly uncomfortable in the backup role but played his part nonetheless without complaining publicly.

He returned to the starting lineup for two games after Jones suffered a late-season ankle injury. Manning’s final game was a Week 15 win over the Miami Dolphins in front of the MetLife Stadium faithful. His career record stands at 117-117 (8-4 postseason).

Manning was named to four Pro Bowls (2008, 2011, 2012, 2015) and is one of five players with multiple Super Bowl MVPs (Bart Starr, Terry Bradshaw, Joe Montana, and Tom Brady are the others). He is currently ranked seventh all-time in passing yards and eighth all-time in touchdowns.

– Curtis Rawls is a Managing Editor for Full Press Coverage and covers the NFL and the New York Giants. Please like and follow on Facebook and Twitter. Curtis can be followed on Twitter @CuRawls203.