WATCH: Emotional Eli Manning reacts to news he’s been benched

Since 2004, the New York Giants have never had a starting quarterback not named Eli Manning.

In fact, it has been 210 games since another player started a game at the quarterback position for the Giants.

However, that incredible streak (second only to Brett Favre’s record 297 consecutive starts by a quarterback) will come to an end on Sunday, but not due to an injury. No, the 2-9 Giants will simply bench Manning instead.

On Tuesday, after learning of his benching, an emotional Manning spoke with reporters, holding back tears at one point as he discussed the decision by coach Ben McAdoo:

WATCH: Eli Manning reacts to the announcement that he will not start on Sunday pic.twitter.com/nQoPEcfTl3

— New York Giants (@Giants) November 28, 2017

“It’s been hard,” he said. “It’s been a hard day to handle this, but I’ll hang in there and figure it out.”

Starting Geno Smith over Manning is sure to be an unpopular decision in New York, as fans there have grown to love Manning over the years. After all, he’s led the Giants to two Super Bowl victories during his career.

Whether we’ve seen the last of Manning in New York remains to be seen, but this is a sad day for the former Rebel.

Adam Spencer

Adam is a daily fantasy sports (DFS) and sports betting expert. A 2012 graduate of the University of Missouri, Adam now covers all 16 SEC football teams. He is the director of DFS, evergreen and newsletter content across all Saturday Football brands.