saintz08

A tactless move by the Chargers

Paul Attner /


It was cruel what the Chargers did to Eli Manning in the NFL draft. To subject him to the booing of the crowd at the NFL draft was mean-spirited and unnecessary. They easily could have executed the trade with the Giants prior to the start of the draft, giving New York the first choice and still preserving Phillip Rivers as their future quarterback.


Instead, they held onto the No. 1 pick and used it as payback to the Manning family, which had told San Diego that Eli would not play in their city. They took Eli, who then had to stand on stage next to commissioner Paul Tagliabue and absorb the sad reaction of the fans.

No wonder Manning didn't want to be a Charger.

Each side declared happiness over the ultimate maneuvering atop the draft. The Giants drooled over Manning for weeks, respecting both his ability and his bloodline. The Chargers never were convinced he was worth the first choice, and keeping him would have been foolish. Instead, they now have extra picks, which should translate into badly needed additional talent for a woeful franchise.

Manning will become an elite player in the NFL, which will make the Giants' proactive decision to obtain him a very wise move. He has the physical talent to be a success. More important, his low-key personality will allow him to withstand the caldron that surrounds every pro quarterback in New York.

This draft won't be nearly as memorable for the Chargers. Rivers will sign a contract far exceeding the worth of his talents. But at least he should be an improvement on current starter Drew Brees.

http://www.foxsports.com/content/view?contentId=2349814

Cadillac

I thought by waiting till they had already drafted them was a brilliant move, business wise, by the Chargers. Before the draft, they had really lost most of their leverage due to Eli\'s whining. When the Chargers took Manning though, the Giants were forced to take Rivers, the 3rd rated QB on their board, with the 4th pick.

Suddenly the Chargers have ALL the leverage again. The Giants knew full well that they couldn\'t sitck with having taken the Rivers with the 4th pick. The Giants were suddenly forced into paying whatever the Chargers wanted.

I thought it was brilliant. The Mannings tried to play the Chargers, but Eli ended up getting used like a pawn. It was certainly fitting, to say the least.

\'They want to give me $6 million. What do I do? - Fred Thomas

Euphoria

I am sure the Giants were booing as well, no biggy... the fact he went number one and will be paid as a number one is all good and he is going where he wanted to go.

If they change the rule on when a player can enter the draft... I\'d say next year we go ahead and draft one of the Mannings grandkids...

[Edited on 26/4/2004 by Euphoria]

GoldenTomb

I totally agree....at first I was pointing the finger at the Chargers, but then I realized that you should go wherever you\'re drafted, simple as that. It\'s not right to try to circumvent that system. My personal opinion of Eli has definitely changed for the worst. Sad thing is he won\'t put up Peyton-like numbers unless Tom Coughlin has totally changes his system, which he won\'t.

saintfan

Leave it to you, 08, to post this junk on here. You and a handful of others may think poor little Eli had to suffer, but ultimately he got more than he deserved. The Chargers made a sound decision when they did what they did, and rightfully, they didn\'t include poor little Eli\'s agenda (or Archie\'s) when they did it! Why should they? It\'s a business is it not? Eli better step it up a notch -- He\'s playin\' with the Big Boys now, and for his sake I hope his whining days are over. It\'ll be a short career otherwise.

C'mon Man...

SaintsReporter

I just wonder how much money Eli and his agent had to pay the guy to write that article. The damage control as begun. Maybe we can get 08 on the payroll too. But, there\'s really no need for that is it. He happily does it for free -- :P

[Edited on 26/4/2004 by SaintsReporter]

D_it_up

I agree with the article. I think it was cruel for what the Chargers did to poor Eli, BUT........I loved every stinkin minute of it. If I were an owner, general manager, or head coach, I had the first pick in the draft, and the obvious first pick was a prima donna who didn\'t want to play for my team? I\'d do the SAME THING the Chargers did. Eli and Archie have proved themselves to be a couple of punks who were getting their way, when in all reality, the Chargers had their way with them. So do the Mannings feel violated now? Do they feel dirty? Do they need a shower? They should feel that way. The Chargers just screwed them harder than they thought they\'d screw the Chargers. San Diego played this BRILLIANTLY. Is Eli\'s feelings hurt because he was BOOED?!?!? Come the hell on!!!! You\'re about to be playing in the BIGGEST MEDIA CIRCUS IN THE COUNTRY!!!! You better get used to it, Eli. Sure they love you know, but wait til you start screwing up. You\'re picture will be on the front page of every sports section in every paper in New York City. Your clips will be shown on every television station. You\'re in freakin NEW YORK....home of ESPN. Dude, you\'re under the microscope before you even sign a contract. So you\'re hurt over a few boos at the draft? Get real, Eli! You\'ve got a LOT more of that to come. I\'m sure daddy Manning didn\'t pass ANY of that information on to you.

People shouldn't be afraid of their government. Governments should be afraid of their people.

iceshack149

This manuvering was tactless by both of these organizations in their treatment of Phillip Rivers. The guy waited all of his life for this moment only to be jerked around between the Chargers and the Giants in his moment of glory for all his family and friends and millions of others to see.

And Berman said a number of times that Eli was classy about it all? He wouldn\'t even wear the Chargers hat! He was trying awfully hard to force that smile at the podium as the Charger fans yelled, \"Wear the hat. Wear the hat!\"

No, the victim here was Phillip Rivers. And he was the classy one.

"...it's good to have friends, no matter where they are."--JOESAM2002

saintfan

Exactly. Ya rekon poor little punkie Eli was takin notes?

That\'s just funny. \"Do they need a shower?\"...and is there a shower somewhere big enough to get all the egos in one place? LOL :P

saintz08

The Chargers are a horid organization and a worse football team . Something I would not even wish on Saintsfan .

Condon who represents both Eli and Brees , most likely had something to say about the organization to Eli and that started the whole thing . Condon who would gets a percentage of the advertising rights from Eli , most likely started the whole thing to get Eli in a larger market .

[Edited on 26/4/2004 by saintz08]