By Geoff Walter / SNY.tv

 

 

O brother, where art thou? Eli Manning is not his brother Peyton Manning, nor is he living up to the family name on the field in his recent performances over the past seven weeks at his post as Giants quarterback. Big Black & Blue is now in the middle of a three-game skid, dropping games against opponents that many believed were each weaker than the last. With the season now on the brink, legions of Giants fans are wondering if they should give up on Eli Manning and find a replacement quarterback. Here's your chance to see my take on Manning's mishaps and respond with some thoughts of your own.

Coming into Sunday's game Manning's completion rate was 95-for-188, or 50.5 percent. It is now at 52.3 percent. Interceptions have also been a problem, as he has 11 in the past seven games. Eli's interceptions have a nasty habit of leading to touchdowns by the other team, as was the case on Sunday against Tennessee. As was the case in all of the past few games. "A bad decision on my part," Manning said after Sunday's game. One of many.

Add the defense to that, and the coaching staff, and the fans. The game against Tennessee started off great, and the Giants were up 21-0. Then the fourth quarter started and all hell broke loose. Tennessee was No. 27 in offense, yet still managed 24 points -- unanswered! -- in the fourth quarter

Last week running back Tiki Barber complained that he wasn't being handed the ball enough. Sunday he got 25 carries for 82 yards. The Titans were also ranked 31st in defense, second-to-last, only ahead of Cincinnati. Of course, none of that matters if Eli throws passes that no one can catch, or worse -- an opposing player can catch and does.

Who are the alternatives? Jared Lorenzen? A rookie who has two years in the NFL and goose eggs to show for it. Tim Hasselbeck? The last time he played was Sept. 11, 2005 against Arizona, when he had no passes but managed to lose three yards in two rushing attempts.

Eli teased many Giants fans during those first three quarters against the Titans. Sunday, at least for three quarters, Eli reminded us of what we were promised we'd get for Phillip Rivers, and gave us a glimpse of the quarterback the he can -- and should -- become.

Right now the Giants stand 6-5 on the season, a game behind the Cowboys. If -- a big if -- the Giants can beat the Cowboys, they take over the lead in the East due to tiebreaker rules. But they'll almost have to run the table to ensure a berth.

The remaining five games for the Giants feature matchups against Carolina, Philadelphia, New Orleans, Washington and Dallas. The Giants have already beaten the Cowboys, Redskins and Eagles earlier this season, but there's no reason to believe that things will be the same as last time. An added hurdle is that right now the Saints are the top offensive team in the NFL.

As much as you want to argue that the Giants defense is responsible for stopping interceptions from turning into touchdowns, it's Eli's responsibility to make sure they don't happen in the first place. Manning has a habit of making bad passes at bad times, and instead of nipping a potential problem in the bud, plugs it with a few hundred pounds of C4 and lights the fuse. Coughlin has said he won't replace Manning, so Eli is the Giants' QB now and for the foreseeable future. "We're gonna be sick about this one forever," Coughlin said after losing to the Titans. Some fans already are.