NEW YORK ---- With past and present Chargers quarterbacks squaring off today at Giants Stadium, we think of A.J. Smith.

And Peter Minuit.

Smith, the Chargers' general manager, is well known.

Minuit, not so much.

Both share a Gotham City legacy ---- they shrewdly hoodwinked the Manhattan locals.

Smith drafted sour puss Eli Manning first overall in 2004, stiff-arming the quarterback's request to do the opposite. Manning spent 45 minutes as a Charger before Smith peddled him to the New York Giants for an impressive bounty that included Philip Rivers, the draft's fourth selection.

Minuit got one over the Indians residing in Manhattan in 1626, purchasing this brimming island for a whopping $24 ---- or about what it costs to park your car here for an hour.

It's hard to determine whether Smith or Minuit swept up the best pot. But it's not hard to tell which NFL team got the better value.

"I like to think we did, in how we've progressed and what we've been able to build here over the past few years," Rivers said.

Poking fun at the prickly Smith is a favorite pastime in this column. His dour demeanor, aloof manner and failure to win an NFL championship after some 25 years in the business earn him the nickname Lord of No Rings.

But today we praise the jewelry-free Smith for his swindling of the Giants, when Rivers ---- the quarterback Smith always wanted ---- came west for the me-me-me Manning.

And so much more.

Smith's bounty included the draft picks he used to obtain linebacker Shawne Merriman, kicker Nate Kaeding and, indirectly, left tackle Roman Oben. Including Rivers, that's three Pro Bowlers and a critical protector of Rivers' blindside for two seasons.

All for the me-me-me Manning.

"Certainly the picks and acquisitions we got with that and the impact that those players made and continue to make are huge,'' Rivers said. "It's had a big impact on this franchise over the last five or six years."

Manning's selfish hijacking of the NFL draft didn't play well in the league, especially in San Diego. Manning became as hated as the Dodgers, Barry Bonds, Deion Sanders and Donald Sterling. Manning was booed with a passion at Qualcomm Stadium in 2005 when the Chargers thumped the G-men.

Chargers fans may not have NFL championship banners to hoist, but don't dare drag their town and franchise through the muck. It's a prideful ---- and patient ---- Charger Nation that Manning thumbed his nose at.

"I was hoping it could have been solved in not such a messy way, but I was willing to take that," Manning said. "It's not the way you want to go into the NFL."

It was quite an entrance with then-NFL commissioner Paul Tagliabue handing Manning a Chargers hat and jersey. Manning's face told the story of someone holding a dirty diaper.

Manning said his mother has the jersey tucked away at home. But let's be clear: Manning will never be welcomed in the Chargers' house.

"It's an exciting day; you're getting drafted and going into the NFL," Manning recalled. "You're supposed to be fired up and excited. It's a different way of going into it, but it was still a great day and it turned out well. I'm excited to be here in New York, and Philip is excited to be in San Diego. Hopefully, both teams and organizations and players feel that everything worked out the best."

True, but the Giants got worked by Smith.

New York can point out, and rightfully so, that Smith lacks a ring, while Manning owns a Super Bowl MVP title.

In the bottom-line NFL, nothing means more.

"We're still gunning for that championship and the Giants won it a couple years ago,'' Rivers said. "We haven't reached the ultimate goal here yet, but certainly (the trade) helped put together a group of guys that had a huge impact on this team."

Without the players Smith landed in the Manning trade, the Chargers wouldn't be aiming to win the AFC West for an unprecedented fourth straight year. They wouldn't annually be in the playoff chatter, either. And they wouldn't have a team ---- before injuries and misread talent ---- that began this season among the savvy picks to reach the Super Bowl.

And it's all because Smith picked the Giants' pockets.

Now, if Rivers can just claim a win today in his first start against the player so closely linked to him, he can scoot back across the country to America's Finest City, the one that wasn't good enough for Manning.

"I think I like it here a whole lot better," Rivers said, comparing San Diego to New York. "It certainly fits me a little more out here. I feel like I made out on the good side of the deal in many ways. I'm glad to be in San Diego, and hopefully I can help the Chargers go to New York this weekend and get a big victory."

Win or lose, Smith deserves a bow in transforming this downtrodden franchise with his one sweeping move. All because he swooped in and pulled a fast one over those presiding in Manhattan.

It was grand gesture that would make a certain Dutchman, Minuit, proud.