The NFL trade deadline is set for 4 p.m. Tuesday, and Eli Manning is not sweating it out one bit.
Not that Manning sweats much, but in this case, he holds all the cards. As part of the four-year, $84 million contract extension he signed before the 2015 season, he insisted on getting a full no-trade clause in the deal. The Giants, initially, were slightly taken aback by the request but agreed to it. Thus, Manning does not go anywhere he does not want to go.
And he’s made it clear several times the past few weeks he wants to stay right where he is — even with the Giants suffering through a 1-6 season — and eventually retire with the team that traded for him in 2004 in a draft-day deal with the Chargers.
The face of the franchise has a house in suburban New Jersey, another out near the Hamptons (Quogue, to be exact) in eastern Long Island and is not going anywhere. Manning, 36, is on the books for salary-cap hits of $22.2 million in 2018 and $23.2 million in 2019. He has stated he wants to stay, and there are no indications he is not telling the truth.
He could (and would) block any trade scenario, unless the Giants make it clear he is not in the plans moving forward. That is not going to happen. Still, there are teams in contention (Jaguars, Packers, Broncos) with needs at quarterback.
With the Jaguars, Manning would reunite with Tom Coughlin. With the Packers, Manning would be a temporary replacement for injured Aaron Rodgers. With the Broncos, he would replace inconsistent Trevor Siemian and follow in the footsteps of older brother Peyton Manning, who went to Denver after his time in Indianapolis came to an end.
But this is all speculation. Manning is not getting traded.