On Wednesday, Giants co-owner John Mara said of quarterback Eli Manning's benching "that maybe I would have handled that a little bit differently." But coach Ben McAdoo said on Friday that he has no problems with the way the team sent its two-time Super Bowl MVP to the bench and made Geno Smith the starter for Sunday's game against the Raiders.

"I was honest, I was upfront with Eli and I don't have any regrets with the way it was handled," McAdoo said.

McAdoo said the plan presented to Manning was for the quarterback to make his 211th straight start on Sunday and then get replaced by Smith at the start of the second half. Mara indicated that he was not on board with such a defined exit strategy.

"I didn't necessarily think it had to be at the half," Mara said. "I think if he's playing well in the first half, we're winning the game, it looks like we've got a chance, the offense is clicking, I would argue then keep him in the game."

McAdoo declined to address the discrepancy.

"We were on the same page with how it was going to be handled," McAdoo said.

Perhaps part of the problem stems from the fact that McAdoo said, "I have not talked to John recently." General manager Jerry Reese was the intermediary between the coach and owner as the plan to bench Manning to give Smith and rookie Davis Webb opportunities in the final five games was put into action.

The decision has been met with an overwhelmingly unfavorable reaction from former Giants, players around the league, analysts and fans. Part of the negative response stems from McAdoo's seemingly callous approach to the benching of a beloved player.

"I suppose he could have," Mara said when asked if McAdoo could have shown more compassion when making the announcement. "I don't think that's necessarily his strength, but I suppose he could have. Again, at the end of the day, does it really make any difference? The fact of the matter is it's a major decision for this franchise and with a beloved figure, people are not going to like it.

McAdoo has no regrets about the lack of emotion he showed, either.

"You have to separate the emotions and your feelings and make a decision with what you feel is right for the organization moving forward," McAdoo said.

Dan Duggan may be reached at dduggan@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @DDuggan21. Find our Giants coverage on Facebook.