Going into the 2006-2007 season, the New York Giants were widely considered the team to beat.  With the younger brother of now Super Bowl XLI champ Peyton Manning at the helm, Eli Manning was entering his second full season as Giants QB.

In hindsight, Eli’s second full season in the pros should remind you a lot of his first year.  Manning delivered the first eight games of the year, posting an NFC East best 6-2 record, winning five straight at one point against conference rivals.  As their schedule got tougher, the Giants struggled.

A key injury to Amani Toomer, one of Manning’s favorite targets is where the collapse started.  Much like his rookie campaign, 2006 saw Manning wear down late in the season as the Giants backed into the playoffs.  Through all of this, Manning still managed to throw for an impressive 3,244 yards and 24 touchdowns.  He was able to complete almost 58 percent of his passes, improving by five points from a year ago.

Analyzing his short career, only three games come to mind that would validate him as the top overall pick he once was, one of which was a loss.

One of Eli’s most impressive performances came in 2005 when the Giants traveled to San Diego for the first time since the 2004 draft.  Although his team didn’t come out with a win, he showed brilliant resilience when Charger fans booed him every time the Giant offense stepped on the field.  The Giants wound up losing that day, but their young star put on quite a performance.  He completed almost 60 percent of his passes while throwing for over 350 yards and two touchdowns.

At Giants stadium, a week after the 42-23 defeat to the Chargers, Manning showed confidence wasn’t an issue.  He was able to deliver against the St. Louis Rams, throwing for a career high four touchdowns.  He threw for 200 odd yards, as the Giants put on a rout of their own, winning easily 44-24.

Fast forward a year to 2006, when Manning was able to deliver one of the greatest comebacks in NFL history which will remain a staple of his potentially brilliant career.  It was against one of the Giants most hated NFC rivals, the Philadelphia Eagles.

To backtrack, Eli was coming off a Week 1 nationally televised showdown with big bro Peyton and the future-champion Indianapolis Colts. After a tough five-point loss, the Giants had to travel to Philadelphia to face a rejuvenated Eagle team with a chip on their shoulder, fresh off a blowout of the Texans.