NFL leaves Tom Brady off photo of elite quarterbacks

On Sunday night, the NFL posted a graphic on its Twitter account showing seven of the game’s elite quarterbacks while posing the question of which teams could meet in the Super Bowl.

And guess what: The guy who won it last year wasn't even pictured.

A still smarting NFL somehow managed to leave New England Patriots QB and four-time champion Tom Brady off of its promotional post before deleting the tweet.

How's that for sour grapes?

The NFL has deleted this tweet, in what I presume is an elaborate tribute to Tom Brady's rescinded suspension pic.twitter.com/SCg7VO509U

— Bruce Arthur (@bruce_arthur) September 7, 2015

I guess beating the NFL doesn't make you elite.

Phil Simms says Eli Manning isn't one of the NFL's elite

How bad are things for Eli Manning.  Bad enough that former New York Giants quarterback Phil Simms would actually demote Manning from the ranks of the elite.

Simms didn't hold back anything when he was asked about the two-time Super Bowl MVP winner on "NFL Monday Quarterback" on CBS Sports Network.

"No, he's not one of the elites.  Because when I hear the word "elite," I'm thinking about guys that can make unbelievable plays on the field by themselves," said Simms — a Super Bowl MVP himself.

"There are very few quarterbacks in that category.  Yes, Eli has been a tremendous team player.  he has been MVP of the Super Bowl twice.  I know that. But the way I look at it, the answer is no."

The once beleaguered Manning got himself into tossed into the comparisons with the NFL's best quarterbacks after he said he saw himself as an elite quarterback when asked prior to the 2011 season.  He backed it up by leading  the Giants to a second Lombardi Trophy in five years.

Manning started this season where he left off in February — and was an early MVP candidate— but a three game slump, where he has failed to throw a touchdown pass, has sparked the debates about whether his skills or a couple of lucky catches made him a winner.

One Hall of Fame quarterback has come to Manning's defense.

"You can't spell elite without Eli.  The pressure situations that Eli has thrived in over his short career in my mind make him an elite quarterback," said former San Diego Charger Dan Fouts, who also appeared on the show. " All you have to do is look back at his two Super Bowl wins and the way he beat the Patriots."

While Manning takes a few days off from throwing during the Giants bye week, the debate will rage over whether or not his arm is tired.  Exhausted or not, he still has three fourth-quarter comebacks this season.

"I have to give him a nod and say Eli is elite," added Fouts.

Tom Brady Went From Elite QB To An Irate One

If Eli Manning finally proved to the world he should be considered an "elite" quarterback—in the class of Tom Brady—with his late-game heroics on Sunday, it was was the New York Giants defense which may have turned the New England Patriots QB into an irate one.

The Giants D was all over the All-everything QB during Sunday's 24-20 win but Brady's frustration reached an early boil when one of his passes was tipped into Giants linebacker Mathias Kiwanuka's  hands in the second quarter.

Brady vented his frustration after the drive-killing INT by heading to the bench, slamming a cup of Gatorade to the ground and getting a power drink spritz.  It looked like the cold sprinkle even caught the pissed off signal-caller off guard.

It wasn't only the Giants coverage that made Brady's afternoon miserable all day.  The pass rush was all over him—resulting in two sacks, three knockdowns and over a dozen hurries.  Something the New England glamor boy isn't used to—especially in his home stadium.

The Patriots lost at home for the first time in 20 games.

While Brady wasn't terrible, it Manning who looked more elite after rallying the Giants on a game-winning 80-yard, eight play drive with 15 seconds left in the game.  It was moments after Brady had given New England their own last minute 20-17 lead with 1:36 to go.

The way things are going for the Patriots right now, Brady may be seeing more Gatorade sprinkles than showers.

Eli Manning Outduels Elite Brady; Giants Beat Patriots, 24-20

Eli Manning may have finally justified using the word "elite" when describing his game after he marched the New York Giants 80 yards on eight plays in the waning seconds to defeat the New England Patriots, 24-20, in Foxboro today.

This was the first meeting between the two teams since 2007—when Manning led the Giants to a Super Bowl victory.  Even after that momentous victory, the Giants quarterback is still having a hard time trying to convince fans he should be mentioned in the same breath as Tom Brady.

In that game, the Giants broke the hearts of Patriots fans and New England's shot at a perfect 19-0 season.  Today, the Giants broke their hearts again along with the Pats 20-game home win streak.

More importantly, Manning proved he could do it again.

Manning—who compared himself to the "elite" Brady in an interview this year— has been criticized for the remark all season.  Today, he might have put the Eli-bashers to rest.

The Giants trailed, 17-20, after Brady pulled another patented last minute drive out of his own hat and hit TE Ron Gronkowski just over the end zone line with 1:36 remaining in the game.

After the kick-off, the Giants (6-2) started at their own twenty before Manning began driving the Giants to the winning touchdown.  The team was helped by a 20-yard pass interference call on Patriots safety Sergio Brown on the one-yard line two plays before Manning hit TE Jake Ballard with a toss in the left corner of the end zone with :15 remaining on the clock.

The game was a sloppily-played defensive match throughout the first half.  The score was 0-0 at half time and the Giants missed tackles and dropped passes.  In the fourth quarter, Brady came alive and the G-Men looked tired and beaten.

The Giants quarterback came up big when it counted.

Manning finished the game with 250 yards on 20-of-39 passing and two TDs and one INT.  He might have had better stats if his receivers and backs didn't drop half-a-dozen throws and his favorite target, Hakeem Nicks, wasn't sidelined.  But in crunch time, Manning was superb or more appropiately—elite.  Manning threw both of his TD passes in the final 3:03 of the game.

Brandon Jacobs was the workhorse out of the backfield and finished the game with 72 yards on 18 carries and a 10-yard TD.  While he wasn't spectacular, the 260 pound Jacobs—who complained earlier about his lack of playing time— was serviceable in the absence of starter Ahmad Bradshaw.

Manning, meanwhile, proved he is becoming one of the best quarterbacks in the league.  He may not have the arm of Aaron Rodgers or the precision of Brady, but he manages to win.

Today's game was the first in a brutal row of teams on the Giants schedule.  Manning will have to prove himself against six of the best teams in the NFL over the next eight weeks if he wants to keep in elite company.