Giants lavish praise on Manning
February 05, 2012 14:58:48 UK
Team-mates have heaped praise on New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning ahead of their crunch showdown with the New England Patriots in the Super Bowl.
Eli Manning will be crucial to the Giants' hopes of Super Bowl glory.Manning has been in sensational form for the Giants this season, and will match-up against opposite number for the Patriots Tom Brady in what promises to be a mouth-watering clash.
The 31-year-old has once again for the third successive season averaged over 61 percent and has threw for 4,933 yards which has included 29 touchdowns.
While all eyes will be on the performance of Manning tonight, coaches and colleagues have been lining up to back their star man who showed his toughness against a physical San Francisco defence in the NFC Championship Game two weeks ago.
"He's a tough guy, man. To get up, fire the football and lead our team like he did (in San Francisco) after taking some of the hits he took. I mean, it makes it easier to rally behind him," said Giants safety Antrel Rolle.
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Equally complimentary was Justin Tuck, who added: "He's a leader, man. How much fight does he have and how tough is he? Shoot. Let's just put it this way: If he can handle and withstand what he did against (San Francisco's) front seven, you can't question his toughness."
One of Manning's standout qualities is his calmness under pressure, a quality that Giants coach Tom Coughlin admires.
"He's the same positive influence on everybody around him," said Coughlin.
"He doesn't get real upset and point the finger or want to know what the deal is with a sack, although I'm sure he knows."
Manning is rated as 2.88 to earn the MVP award, with great rival Brady 2.25.
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