Why would Ben McAdoo call out Eli like that?
It is a code of conduct nearly as old as the forward pass, an unwritten set of rules that almost every coach abides by when dealing with his quarterback, especially during times of adversity.
Even the most autocratic coaches have agreed to these parameters, and rare is the time that the guidelines are violated.
When it comes to criticizing your starting quarterback, you do so in the confines of the locker room or on the sidelines, but almost never in public. Let the fans and writers and other assorted opinionists in the media excoriate your quarterback; but when it comes to your choice of words in the open forum of a news conference or any other communal setting, don't go there.
Ben McAdoo went there with Eli Manning. Again. “Sloppy quarterback play,” McAdoo said of Manning's inability to call for the snap from center Weston Richburg before the 40-second clock had expired. “Quarterback and the center need to be on the same page there. We've got to get the ball snapped.”
No sooner had the Giants' second-year coach told his players and then the media to put the loss on him, McAdoo dressed down his quarterback in his postgame news conference. It was the kind of rebuke you almost never hear, and even if McAdoo had justification for criticizing Manning on not getting a play off in time on a crucial fourth-and-goal from the Lions' 2-yard line, he needed to keep his feelings to himself.
Like every other coach would do, especially in showing deference to a quarterback whose resume includes two Super Bowl MVP awards and almost every passing record in franchise history. For a head coach who had just concluded his 19th career game to second-guess a quarterback who had just concluded the 201st straight start of his career, it was the most tone deaf moment of McAdoo's brief tenure.
McAdoo was asked why he didn't call a timeout, a reasonable question given the situation. Again, he put it on Manning. “Because we have a veteran quarterback who has played a lot of football,” he said. “I expect us to get the ball snapped.”
He then chided Manning for an admittedly uneven performance, the continuation of a vexing series of games in which the Giants have failed to score as many as 20 points in eight straight.
“He had some good moments, and some moments that weren't what we were looking for,” McAdoo said. “I didn't like the interception when we got the turnover. The defense took the ball away. You know, it happened fast for him. I thought he should've went to number two or checked the ball down. He was under duress all night. I thought he did some good things in the pocket, making some plays under duress, but the whole offense needs work. We're not in rhythm right now.”
It was a reasonable assessment, no doubt. Manning did have his struggles. But for a coach who himself has been at the center of all that has gone wrong in this debacle of an 0-2 start, McAdoo would be much better served protecting his quarterback from criticism, not piling on as if he'd just beaten Ereck Flowers and sacked Manning.
What made McAdoo's criticism of Manning even more curious was the coach's unwillingness to single out other players — starting with Flowers, who had another brutal game in allowing three sacks to Lions defensive end Ziggy Ansah.
Asked about whether he had considered benching Flowers, McAdoo said, “We talked about giving him some (blocking) help.”
And what about the coach benching Flowers moving forward? “It's more than one player,” he said.
If McAdoo won't go there in criticizing Flowers, then why tweak the most indispensable player on your team, the player who needs to elevate his performance if the Giants are to have a chance this season?
It just doesn't make sense, especially when you go back to that code of conduct that coaches have lived by all these years, the code that says you defend your quarterback in public.
Should McAdoo have needed any reinforcement for that line of thinking, then he only needed to look to his old boss, Tom Coughlin, who was in the building Monday night to commemorate the 10-year anniversary of the Giants' 2007 Super Bowl run. A run that was made possible largely because of Manning's heroics.
I can't ever remember a time when Coughlin publicly chided Manning during their 12 years together. Even in the bad times. Especially in the bad times. Coughlin always had Manning's back. As a great coach should always do with a great quarterback.
So if McAdoo is going to put this one on himself — as he should — then do it without throwing your quarterback overboard.