Don’t let Eli Manning’s calm demeanor on the field — or vacant look while watching his brother Peyton clinch the Super Bowl this month — fool you, the Giants quarterback has a bit of a different reputation among his teammates.
According to former Giants linebacker Antonio Pierce, who played with Eli for five seasons, Manning has another side to his personality.
“Here’s a guy that’s playing pranks on his linemen,” Pierce said on ESPN Radio on Wednesday. “He’d go get some purple paint and dip their shoes. And these guys are looking like Barney on a flight.”
The reasons for the prank were left unclear by Pierce.
“They did something to Eli, so Eli goes to the equipment room and they get legit purple paint,’’ the retired linebacker said. “So we come back in and we hear ruckus. All the linemen, all the starting five linemen had purple shoes. These are expensive shoes. And we’re getting on the plane. You know how [former head coach Tom] Coughlin is. You can’t be late. [Your] wife can’t bring you new shoes. You need to get on the plane with painted shoes.’’
OK, so he’s not the funniest guy in room, but Pierce said Manning’s even-keeled personality was beneficial.
“That’s what people don’t understand about Eli,’’ Pierce said. “That’s the corniness and quirkiness about him that make him cool. When you see him at the Super Bowl, it’s like, Eli just has a different way of going about things.”