Talk about keeping it in the family.
Peyton Manning's consecutive starts streak of 237 games (including playoffs) will come to an end Sunday when he sits out the Colts' season-opener at Houston.
So who's the next quarterback on the active list?
Little brother Eli Manning, who will make his 111th straight start (postseason included) when the Giants take the field against Washington on Sunday afternoon.
Manning will move into fifth place on the all-time list for consecutive starts for a quarterback, passing Buffalo's Joe Ferguson.
Manning was unaware of the consecutive starts streak when asked about it on Wednesday.
"You try to be out there every week and perform and be on the field with your teammates. so it's not something that I'm counting and keeping track of," he said.
For the record, Manning has started every Giants game since Week 11 of the 2004 season, his rookie year.
But his streak has been in jeopardy on more than one occasion over eight years in the NFL.
Manning suffered a severe shoulder contusion in the opening week of the 2007 season. His availability for the following game was up in the air all week. Some reports that week had him out for at least a month. But Manning stepped on the field that Sunday for the Giants' first snap against Green Bay.
He also played the final 12 weeks of the 2009 season with an injured plantar fascia.
"Sure, there's been a few down moments ... a Friday decision or game-time decision. That's going to happen every once in a while," Manning said. "But I've always felt that I could go out there and perform at a high level and be the best option for the team."
During his streak, Manning has led the Giants to four playoff appearances and an upset win over the then-undefeated Patriots in Super Bowl XLII. He was named MVP of the game.
The former first-round draft pick credited strong offseason workouts for his durability.
"You try to be out there, work hard during the offseason and prevent the pulls. Those things can be [prevented] a little bit," Manning said.
Manning, the new Ironman (or Iron Manning) of NFL quarterbacks, is 23 starts ahead of the next active quarterback on the starts list -- San Diego's Phillip Rivers (87). Brett Favre is the overall leader at quarterback with 297 straight starts.
But that's not a mark Manning is concerned with.
He also isn't taking any pride in taking over the active lead from his big brother, who is out recovering from offseason neck surgery.
Coming off a franchise-record tying 25-interception season, Manning is instead focused on getting the injury-ravaged Giants get off to a good start Sunday.
"My job is to make the throws, follow my reads and put our team in good position," Manning said. "That's all I'm trying to do."
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