New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning has put his fraud case behind him, settling the lawsuit against him.
New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning has put his fraud case to rest, reaching a settlement before it went to trial, according to the Associated Press.
The trial was initially scheduled to begin on Monday, May 14, but was pushed back due to a death in the family of one of the jurors.
Manning was accused of falsely marketing memorabilia as game-worn when it was not worn during a game. The 37-year-old quarterback had denied the allegations and claimed that the plaintiff was a con-man, who had a history of knowingly buying non-game-worn memorabilia and claiming it was falsely marketed.
Eli is coming off of a trying season, as he was benched in a game for Geno Smith (which was the final straw that led to the firing of Ben McAdoo). His 3,468 yards are the fewest he’s thrown for since 2008, and his 6.1 yards per attempt were the lowest he’s put up since his rookie season of 2004. His 19 TDs were his fewest since 2013, and his 19:13 TD:INT ratio was his worst since 2013.
He was 36-years-old last season, which has some concerned about his age. However, he also had a terrible offensive line, no run game to help him, and Odell Beckham Jr. only appearing in four games.
The Giants addressed these issues this offseason, signing Nate Solder, drafting Saquon Barkley and Will Hernandez. While it will be on Eli to lead the Giants back to the playoffs in 2018, the team has young quarterbacks Davis Webb and Kyle Lauletta, who they hope to continue to develop while Manning plays.
Manning should have a much better offensive line protecting him, and the addition of the college standout, Barkley, will make the Giants offense more dynamic.
Now that Manning has put his fraud case behind him, he should be able to fully focus on bringing the Giants back to a playoff birth.
