Eli Manning knows his team.
Going into the 2013 season, he knows it can be feast or famine for the New York Giants. It seems like they either miss the playoffs or just go out and win the Super Bowl.
Even though the Giants lost in the playoffs before, it just doesn’t seem that way.
And now, he sees the same thing this year.
“I think every year we are going in feeling good about our team,” Manning said. “I think we are talented, it’s just going to be a matter of how we react to certain situations and that’s usually the difference between a successful year and not. Some of those close games, can you pull them out? You’re going to have those games where everything goes great and you want those but sometimes we’ll have a time where things aren’t going so well for a little bit or you get off to a slow start. Can you bounce back and find a way to win those games when you’re not playing your absolute best? That’s what we’ve got to see about this team, how strong we are and how we’re able to finish the fourth quarters of games and finish the season.”
Betting odds are saying the Giants have a great chance to win the NFC East this year. With the RG3 still questionable down in Washington, Tony Romo now having to live up to a contract extension and Philly breaking in a new head coach, the Giants look like the best bet to finish on top this year.
And it all starts this week in Dallas – a place where the Giants have never lost, going 4-0.
But with so many changes in Big D, Manning knows this year is different.
“Sunday night, start the season vs. Dallas. You know, it’s hard not to be excited about it,” Manning said. “Obviously they’re a very good team with a new defensive coordinator, new defensive scheme, but they still have a lot of good players so we have to go in there and play our best football and see what they’re going to do defensively. I’m sure they’re going to have a few wrinkles that they haven’t shown in preseason but we should be able to adapt to whatever they throw at us and be prepared and go out there and play well.”
The Giants need to get off to the typically good start this year. The schedule looks tough early on in 2013, compared to what Manning usually faces.
With that in mind, he knows the team needs to be prepared if they are going to win Manning’s third Super Bowl.
“We should be able to run the ball well,” he said. “The offensive line is healthy and we feel good about our receivers as well. Hopefully it’s just a matter of whatever we need to do. If a team’s taking away the pass, we’ve got to run the ball. If they’re loading up the box, we’ve got to throw it. We’re not scared to do either one, it’s just whatever the defense is giving you, you’ve got to throw it or run it well. Whatever they’re giving up.”