Eli Manning has been on the scene for 14 years, but never like this. Never has the franchise quarterback shown such anger, been this defiant or sounded so shaken.
“It is one thing to write about my football or my play— when you are attacking my integrity, it definitely makes me angry,’’ Manning said, quite forcefully, Thursday while standing on the balcony outside the Giants training facility, overlooking the green practice fields.
For three years, Manning’s name has been embroiled within a lawsuit filed by memorabilia dealers accusing him and the Giants of passing off equipment as “game-worn’’ when that was not the case.
Manning, citing “pending litigation,’’ said he could not go into specific details of the case against him, but that did not stop him from offering an impassioned self-defense. At times, his voice shook and his lips quivered as he delivered a no-nonsense response.
“I will say that I have never done what I have been accused of doing,’’ Manning said. “I have no reason, nor have I ever had any reason to do anything of that nature. I have done nothing wrong, and I have nothing to hide, and I know that when this is all done everybody will see it the same way.
This controversy surfaced again last week when The Post produced court documents that included a curious email exchange from Manning to Joe Skiba, the Giants’ equipment manager, as Manning requested some memorabilia to satisfy a contractual obligation with Brandon Steiner of Steiner Sports.
“2 helmets that can pass as game used. That is it. Eli,” Manning wrote to Skiba in a 2010 email, according to the court papers.
“I will say that is taken out of context and there is some other filings that have gone on recently that will clear up a lot of those things’’ Manning said.
The accusations stung Manning, but perhaps not as painfully as the reaction to the accusations.
“I think my track record of how I’ve handled myself since I’ve been here in New York, since 2004, speaks for itself,’’ he said. “I’ve tried to do everything with class and be a stand-up citizen, and that is what I have done and that is being attacked right now. … Someone starts something up and everybody turns against you very quickly, it hurts a little bit.’’
Gov. Chris Christie, a staunch Cowboys fan, last week ripped into Manning, calling him a “liar’’ and saying Manning “got caught.’’ Christie also implicated the Giants, saying the team “participated in this as well.’’
Manning did not fire back at the governor of New Jersey.
“I can’t get concerned with that,’’ he said. “I think, again, my track record speaks for itself and so do the Giants, their history and their history of doing things the right way speaks for itself.’’
If he is found to have passed off bogus merchandise as authentic, Manning could face punishment from the NFL, in terms of a suspension, based on the league’s Personal Conduct Policy, which states the commissioner can “address and sanction’’ a player based on “conduct detrimental to the league and professional football.’’
Manning said he has not heard anything from the league regarding this situation.
Manning has made hundreds of millions of dollars in his NFL career and defended his contract with Steiner Sports, which pays him, in part, to produce authentic merchandise for resale.
“Well, I sign autographs like a lot of people do,’’ Manning said. “I owed Steiner jerseys — I did not receive any benefits from that and that was just part of my agreement, but I never personally sold or made any money off a jersey or helmet.’’