LISTEN: Eli Manning Says He Doesn't See 'An End In Sight' To His Career
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. (WFAN) -- Two quarterbacks who were part of Eli Manning's 2004 draft class -- Ben Roethlisberger and Philip Rivers -- have contemplated retirement. But the Giants quarterback said Friday he's not thinking in that direction.
"I don't see an end in sight," Manning told WFAN's Mike Francesa as the Giants opened training. "I know it's out there somewhere. But I understand football -- it's always year to year. It's a year-to-year job playing quarterback, and you get to this level. So I've got to make sure I'm playing at a high level.
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"I've been saying, hey, I've got five years left. So I'll just keep saying five until one day it's over."
The 36-year-old quarterback said, knowing that he's on the back nine of his career, he more deeply appreciates playing for a promising team and is hungrier to seize the moment.
"I should be excited about this squad, but, hey, I've got to work hard, I've got to do everything in the offseason, I've got to make sure I'm doing everything to take advantage of when you have these special teams," said Manning, a two-time Super Bowl MVP.
The Giants went 11-5 last season and were eliminated by the Packers in the first round of the playoffs. Looking to improve their 25th-ranked offense, Big Blue added six-time Pro Bowl wide receiver Brandon Marshall and used their first-round draft pick on speedy tight end Evan Engram.
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"I think the coaches and players looked hard at ourselves and saw what we had to improve on, what we can do, what defenses were playing to slow us down and how we've got to attack those things," Manning said. "And I think obviously going out and getting Brandon Marshall, going out and getting Evan Engram, getting some more weapons will help, so they just can't say, 'Hey, we've got to double-team Odell (Beckham Jr.), take him away and let the other guys beat you.' If that's the game plan, now we've got a lot of guys that can beat you."
To listen to the full interview, click on the audio player above.
To listen to Francesa's other interviews from Giants camp, click here.
