New York Giants head coach Ben McAdoo hinted at the possibility of benching Eli Manning following an embarrassing 51-17 loss to the Los Angeles Rams Sunday. McAdoo said he’s open to change in every position, including the quarterback, per Shaun Morash of The DA Show. Ralph Vacchiano of SNY said McAdoo could switch from Manning to rookie third-round pick Davis Webb. “You also have to look at getting some players some reps in a game," McAdoo explained during the postgame press conference, per Vacchiano. McAdoo said he will take a look if he can give reps to any player who has a chance to be part of the team’s future.
Officially, Geno Smith is the Giants’ No. 2 quarterback, but the Giants want to take a look at Webb now with Manning's contract set to expire at the end of the 2019 season.
Manning struggling this season
The 36-year-old Manning has started for the Giants in the past 13 years, leading them to two Super Bowl titles. However, Manning has struggled this season while playing alongside a sluggish offensive line. In his first seven games, Manning completed 167-of-260 passes for 1,600 yards and ten touchdowns with five interceptions. However, the Giants’ offense is 30th in the league in terms of points with just 16.0 per game. Webb, who was taken in the 3rd round by the Giants, threw 37 touchdowns in his last season at Cal.
In the preseason, he went 18-of-34 for 190 yards with no touchdown and interception.
Rams rout Giants
Against the Rams, Manning completed 20-of-36 passes for 220 yards and two touchdowns with an interception as the Giants dropped to 1-7. With his performance, Manning became the seventh player in NFL history to throw for 50,000 yards, behind Peyton Manning, Brett Favre, Tom Brady, Dan Marino, John Elway and Drew Brees.
Manning threw touchdown passes to Evan Engram and Tavarres King, who finished with three catches for 33 yards. Engram caught four passes for 79 yards while Sterling Shepard had five catches for 70 yards. Orleans Darkwa led the Giants’ rushing game with 71 yards on 16 carries while Wayne Gallman carried the ball nine times for 41 yards.
The 51 points allowed by the Giants’ defense was the biggest they surrendered in a home game since Washington Redskins scored 50 in 1999.
Jared Goff completed 14-of-22 passes for 311 yards and four touchdowns, both career highs. Goff became the first Rams quarterback with 300 passing yards and four touchdown passes since Marc Bulger in 2006. The Rams improved to an NFC West-best 6-2 mark.
