Antrel Rolle On WFAN: Giants Not Relying On Manning Magic
NEW YORK (WFAN) -- Eli Manning, Mr. 4th Quarter.
It's something we've seen all season long: Giants down late, Eli Manning steadily marches his team down the field. Only on Sunday, his fourth-quarter comeback bid fell just short.
While it might seem Big Blue relies too heavily on Manning's last-minute victory habit, safety Antrel Rolle insists it's not that way it all.
"We don't look at it that way," Rolle told WFAN's Joe Benigno and Evan Roberts on Tuesday. "We do our best to to not put ourselves in that situation. It just so happens that pretty much every game we've been in has come down to the wire this season. But, you know, Eli is great at what he does and we understand that. But at the same time, we don't try to rely on him to save us each and every week."
LISTEN: Rolle with Joe & Evan
In a game where San Francisco running back Frank Gore managed just eight yards from scrimmage (zero rushing), one would think the Giants should have won handily. But Rolle wasn't surprised by quarterback Alex Smith's ability to lead the suddenly pass-happy 49ers.
"I played against Alex twice a year for the first five seasons of my career," he said. "I was aware that he could throw the ball and he could make every throw."
As for the injury to Michael Boley, who tweaked his hamstring in the second quarter on Sunday? Rolle says it's "definitely a concern," and offered to step in at linebacker himself if that's what it comes down to.
"We have to roll with what we've got," said Rolle. "We've been making those adjustments all year long, you know, due to the injuries that we've been faced with. We've made it work for us so far so we're just going to have to pick up the pace in another area right now."
Speaking of injuries, the Eagles could be without Michael Vick when they take on the Giants in Week 11. Vick broke two ribs in Sunday's loss to Arizona.
Even so, Rolle isn't about to take Andy Reid's reeling squad lightly.
"You know, Philly is still Philly. They're still an outstanding team in my eyes," said Rolle. "We know that they're going to come an play us extremely hard. We know that every time we're on the field with them it's gonna be a battle."
