Eli Manning is retiring and the Eagles will miss him

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After 16 seasons and two Super Bowl wins, Giants quarterback Eli Manning will announce his retirement at a press conference on Friday afternoon, according to ESPN.

The Eagles will probably miss him.

Because over Eli’s 16-year career, he played the Eagles more than any other team. And he finishes with a career record of 10-21 against Philadelphia, which doesn’t even include both playoff losses to the Birds.

And recently, it was even worse for Manning against the Eagles. Including the game back on Dec. 9 this season, when Manning started for an injured Daniel Jones, Manning lost the last six times he faced the Eagles.

The Eagles have never faced another quarterback more; they have also never beaten an opposing quarterback more.

Here’s a look at Manning’s numbers in his 31 career games against the Eagles:

Record: 10-21
Comp %: 59.3
Yards: 7,994 or 257.9 per game
Touchdowns: 54
Interceptions: 34

Manning threw for more yards, touchdowns and interceptions against the Eagles than any other team. And on the flip side, Manning is the all-time leader in those three categories among opposing QBs facing the Eagles too.

But Manning didn’t have trouble with the other division teams like he did against the Eagles. His record against the Cowboys was 13-17; his record against the Redskins was 19-10.

So now the question for the next five years becomes about Manning’s Hall of Fame odds and worthiness. It’s a question we’ve already been trying to ask for years. Reuben Frank gave his best assessment of that question during the season.

I think the answer to that question in Philadelphia is going to be different than the answer from the rest of the country.

I’m interested to see how different it is.

Manning’s Hall of Fame candidacy is going to be one of the trickier cases we’ve ever seen. Overall, he was a slightly above average quarterback who will finish with a .500 record but who also had moments of greatness, especially when it mattered most.

Manning was the MVP of Super Bowl XLII and Super Bowl XLVI. Both wins came over Bill Belichick, Tom Brady and one of the most impressive dynasties in the history of American sports. But his combined numbers in those two games aren’t even very impressive: He completed 66 percent of his passes for 551 yards (275.5) with three touchdowns and one interception.

Still, the four other players to win multiple Super Bowl MVPs are Bart Starr, Terry Bradshaw, Joe Montana and Tom Brady. Three are in the Hall of Fame and the other will be there the split second he’s eligible.

The crazy thing is that I’d imagine his career record of 117-117 will be one of Manning’s biggest hurdles to get into the Hall. He can thank the Eagles for that. If he never had to play the Birds, his career record would be 107-96, which sounds a heckuva lot better.

He'll probably get into the Hall either way. But it might have been a lot easier for him if he never had to play the Eagles.

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