If I had the chance, I would ask Eli Manning if he really wants to play the Ravens in a preseason game.
Eli suffered a gash that required 12 stitches when he was hit after his helmet came off during the Giants win against the Jets. According to several news stories, he plans to play against the Ravens, a team certainly as physical, if not more so, than the Jets.
This is the same Ravens squad that put seven hits on Redskins’ Quarterbacks, had four sacks against the Redskins, and seven sacks and ten hits on the Panthers’ Quarterbacks.
Eli might want to call his old rival Donovan McNabb and ask how his ankle is feeling today. McNabb came out of the locker room for the second half of the game against the Ravens with his ankle iced and wrapped. There are reports now he may have a high ankle sprain, and is expected to miss the next preseason contest.
McNabb was reportedly seen today wearing a protective boot. In interviews, Mike Shanahan seemed to think the injury was not terribly severe, but he also said McNabb wouldn’t be playing if their next contest against the Jets were a regular season game.
A high ankle sprain can take as long as six weeks to heal, assuming it isn’t bad enough to require surgery, which could put a player out for six months. That could be bad news for the Redskins.
Certainly the Giants can’t afford to lose Manning, given Jim Sorgi is out for at least a couple of weeks with a shoulder injury.
And while Eli may be tough enough to play in the NFL, he’s not Donovan McNabb tough.
So why then would Eli Manning want to face the physical Ravens in a game that doesn’t matter when he’s still recovering from having his head split open? Does he really want to deal with avoiding Terrell Suggs, or worse, Terrence Cody?
I would think twice about playing on Saturday night.
Wouldn’t you?
(Also posted at bleacherreport.com)
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