Eli seeks first win in "Manning Bowl III"
It's round three of Manning vs. Manning as the Denver Broncos take on the New York Giants this Sunday at MetLife Stadium. Little brother Eli may have two Super Bowl rings to Peyton's one but he's still searching for his first win against his brother.
In 2006, Peyton Manning led the Colts to a 26-21 at Giants Stadium and in 2010, in Indianapolis, Peyton threw for three TDs as the Colts crushed New York, 38-14.
This time, Eli Manning said he hopes he can finally break through against his brother.
"It's still neat because it doesn't happen very often and it is neat seeing your big brother on the sideline or seeing him before the game," the Giants quarterback said." Those moments are the things you remember and we'll remember for a long time. Hopefully when I think back on these games that we played against my brother, I can think back and remember at least one win."
That may be a tall task against Peyton's Broncos, who are coming off a 49-27 thrashing of the defending champion Baltimore Ravens. In that game, the elder Manning tied an NFL record by throwing for seven touchdowns and 462 yards.
Though the Giants struggled in a Week 1 loss to Dallas, Eli didn't fare too badly either, throwing for 450 yards and four touchdowns.
In fact, this will be the first time in NFL history that two quarterbacks - let alone brothers who have both won Super Bowl MVPs - have faced each other with each coming off a 400-yard performance.
The brothers are close. They talk football on the phone, evaluate each other's play - and even rap about watching football games on their phones.
But the Manning brothers don't like talking about the Manning brothers. In fact, on a conference call with media this week, Peyton answered 10 minutes of questions about Eli and himself. Finally, the 37-year-old big brother wondered aloud if anyone was going to ask him about the Giants' defense.
Still, the 37-year-old Broncos star conceded the matchup was anything but ordinary.
"You do take a moment there to realize that it is your brother over there that's the quarterback for the New York Giants in the NFL," he said, "the same person that you grew up with, so it is unique and I think you take a moment to realize that it is special."