Giants quarterback Eli Manning has weighed in on the Saints’ bounty scandal.
Manning, who was on the receiving end of a roughing the passer penalty when the Giants played the Saints last season, said Monday that he’s concerned about the stories that former Saints defensive coordinator Gregg Williams bounties to players for knocking opponents out of games.
“Obviously it is a big deal, what’s going on,” Manning told the New York Post. “It’s not good for football and can’t be a part of football.”
Manning said he’s confident that the league office will put an end to bounties around the league.
“I know Roger Goodell will do a good job figuring all this out and making sure this doesn’t happen again,” he said.
Although Manning realizes that every team, including the Giants, talks about hitting the quarterback, he said he draws the line at trying to take the quarterback out of the game.
“When you start talking about injuring a guy and carting him off and trying to end his season or career, that’s not what this game is about,” Manning said. “I think we should have more respect for the game than that. It can’t be a part of football.”