New York Giants: Geno Smith Excited to Learn From Eli Manning

Quarterback Geno Smith has signed with the New York Giants and he is excited to learn from quarterback Eli Manning.

The New York Giants made a solid move to sign free agent quarterback Geno Smith. Even though Smith didn’t have the success that he would have liked to with the New York Jets, there is a lot of potential there.

As a starter for the Jets, Smith totaled a 12-18 record during his four seasons with the Jets. In 2015, Smith was slated to be the starter on a team that won 10 games with Ryan Fitzpatrick. However, a locker room altercation with a team resulted in Smith breaking his jaw, and gave Fitzpatrick the opportunity to lead the team.

Now, Smith will be looking to grow as a backup behind Eli Manning. As a two-time Super Bowl Champion, Manning could be a great influence on Smith.

"“I think the opportunity to learn from [quarterbacks] coach [Frank] Cignetti, coach [Ben] McAdoo, and to be alongside Eli and learn from him, a two-time Super Bowl champion and, in my opinion, a Hall of Fame quarterback,” Smith said to Brian Costello of the New York Post. “I think it will work out tremendously for me. And it’s also an opportunity to be on a real good team, a winning team, get healthy — it’s just a perfect scenario for me. I couldn’t have written it up any better myself.”"

Since Manning has been drafted, being his backup has been one of the easiest jobs in the NFL. Like his brother Peyton, Eli has been able to have a lengthy consecutive games streak. Smith is well aware that Manning doesn’t miss time, and he is perfectly fine with that.

"“We expect that to continue,” Smith said to Costello. “I’m not coming aboard expecting anything else. This is definitely an opportunity for me to learn and to get better.“I want to carry my notepad around and whatever I see Eli doing, whether it’s in the classroom, on the field or off the field, I want to write it down. Because he’s a guy you can model yourself after. If you learn from a guy like that, we can all do a lot better.”"

Due to Manning getting a bit older, having a backup like Smith is certainly a good move for the Giants. Even though he didn’t have success with the Jets, he also wasn’t placed in the greatest situation.

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With the Giants, Smith would have much better than weapons than he ever did when starting for the Jets. If something does happen to Manning, Smith is certainly capable of picking up a few wins as a starter.