“Brett Favre is in here, we’re about to drink a beer and play pool”: When Eli Manning abandoned legendary QB because his friend wouldn’t hop the fence

Eli Manning

Eli Manning has some of the greatest stories you’ll ever hear, from memorable times with Peyton Manning, to even sneaking into a bar with Brett Favre.

The former Giants quarterback, and two-time Super Bowl winner has seen a lot through his NFL career, one that started with some drama right from the moment he was drafted.

The then San Diego Chargers picked Eli first overall in the 2004 NFL draft, hoping to find a potential franchise quarterback (despite having Drew Brees at the time). However, reports had surfaced earlier that Eli would threaten not to play the entire season if he was drafted by the Chargers.

Forcing San Diego’s hand, Eli was dealt to the New York Giants for the fourth overall pick Phillip Rivers in a blockbuster deal. The rest is, as you know it, history.

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Eli Manning almost snuck into a bar to meet Brett Favre until his friend stopped him

While Eli has some incredible stories on the field, some of his greatest ones are the ones off the field. Let’s take it back to when Manning was still young and working his way up in the world.

As a young and developing quarterback in the world during the 2000s, there was probably one guy who you looked up to more than everyone else. At the time, he was taking the league by storm with his gun-slinging attitude and monster arm.

The name’s Brett Favre. Eli once almost had the opportunity to drink beer and play pool with him before he had even entered the NFL or was legal.

Eli saw Favre in a bar, but because he wasn’t technically allowed in, he had to be inventive to find a way to meet the legendary quarterback. He hopped over a fence to find a different way to get in, and he was met by Favre who invited him to drink some beer and play pool.

However, Manning had come with a friend who wasn’t as comfortable with sneaking around the way Eli was. He didn’t hop the fence, and put Eli in a tough position. Does he choose Favre or his friend? At the end of the day, Eli went back to his friend, making sure to stay by his side.

 

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Post Edited By: Ashish Priyadarshi
Brett Favre Eli Manning New York Giants NFL

About the author

Ashish Priyadarshi

Ashish Priyadarshi is The SportsRush's content manager and editor. Ashish freelanced for 1 year in the NFL division before taking on an editorial role in the company. He then tacked on managing content while adding on a writing role in the NBA division. Ashish has been closely following the NFL and NBA since the 2012 season when the Patriots lost the Super Bowl and Derrick Rose was at the height of his powers. Since then, Ashish has focused on honing his knowledge for both leagues in, even writing crossover pieces. In his free time, Ashish is an avid basketball player, he loves to watch movies and TV shows, immersing himself in the cinematic world. Ashish studies computer science and data science at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and would love to mesh his love for sports with his technical skills.

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