Manning gets largest bonus ever for a rookie
No. 1 draft choice Eli Manning will be in training camp on time after agreeing to a six-year, $54 million deal with the New York Giants on Thursday.
Manning, 23, landed a signing bonus of $20 million -- the largest guaranteed money ever for a rookie, and the second highest ever -- after his brother Peyton Manning received a $34.5 million signing bonus as part of the $98 million contract he signed in March.
Eli Manning's deal includes $9 million in incentives, Giants spokesman Pat Hanlon said.
The two sides began bargaining Wednesday morning and worked past midnight in an all-out effort to close the deal. Messages left on the cell phone of agent Tom Condon of IMG Football went unanswered Wednesday, presumably because of the ongoing negotiations. Condon also represents Peyton Manning.
The Giants open camp Thursday at SUNY-Albany, and the team wanted the latest member of the Manning family quarterback tree on hand. Practices are scheduled to begin on Friday.
Manning, the son of former New Orleans Saints standout Archie Manning and brother of current Indianapolis Colts star Peyton Manning, was the first player chosen in this year's draft. He was selected by the San Diego Chargers, who then traded him to New York for a package that included the Giants' first-round pick (No. 4 overall), quarterback Philip Rivers.
The strange swap of first-round quarterbacks and the fact that San Diego had a much larger rookie allocation pool than New York made for some negotiating quirks. But Giants general manager Ernie Accorsi conceded this week that Manning would land the top deal, given his status as the No. 1 selection.
The main sticking point in contract talks between Condon and the Giants was not the amount of money but the complicated rookie salary cap.
Because the Giants traded a player for Manning, they were allocated money under the rookie salary cap that goes with the fourth pick. Had they traded the pick rather than the player, they would have been allowed to offer No. 1 pick money.
Manning's signing is expected to clear the way for several high first-round picks to sign. Rivers is also seeking No. 1 money, even though he was chosen fourth.
In four seasons at Ole Miss, Manning completed 829 of 1,363 attempts for 10,119 yards, with 81 touchdowns and 35 interceptions.
Len Pasquarelli is a senior writer for ESPN.com. Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.
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