Giants legend Eli Manning finally gets his birthday wish

After playing college football for his father’s alma mater, Ole Miss, Manning was drafted with the first-overall pick in the 2004 NFL Draft by the San Diego Chargers. However, he did not want to play for them.

The Giants then stepped in and traded for Manning. They exchanged draft picks and also swapped quarterbacks (the Giants selected Philip Rivers with the fourth-overall pick).

The rest is history. Manning eventually took over the starting quarterback job from Kurt Warner during his rookie year. He didn’t look back for over a decade.

His first Super Bowl run came in the 2007 season. Manning led the Giants to an upset win against the undefeated New England Patriots, spearheaded by Bill Belichick and Tom Brady.

Four years later, Manning led the Giants to another Super Bowl victory over the Patriots. That season was filled with clutch moments from Manning as he led several fourth-quarter comebacks.

The final years

His later years with the Giants were up-and-down. After winning the Super Bowl, Manning and the Giants only made one more playoff appearance, that being in 2016. They were eliminated in the Wild Card round by the Green Bay Packers.

The following year, the Giants benched Manning ahead of their Week 13 game against the Oakland Raiders. He was reinserted into the lineup the week after being benched.

He played one more full season as the Giants’ starter in 2018. The Giants then drafted his eventual replacement, Daniel Jones, with the sixth-overall pick in the 2019 NFL Draft. Manning was replaced by Jones after two games of the 2019 season.

He retired after that season. Since then, Eli and his brother, Peyton Manning, have started the ManningCast for ESPN. The broadcast features celebrity guests during Monday Night Football games.

Manning ended his career as the Giants’ leader in passing yards, touchdowns, and completions. He was also named to four Pro Bowls throughout his career.