Peyton, though, clearly does not like that description much. He has long been protective of Eli — after Tiki Barber took shots at Eli in 2007 and Eli fired back, Peyton pulled a visiting reporter aside in the Colts’ locker room to ask how Eli’s remarks were being received in New York.

To say that Eli is having his finest season suggests to his brother a belief that Eli, now in his eighth year, has been less than stellar until now. So Peyton, so astute at noticing the slightest twitch by a defender, is reluctant to say that Eli may be doing anything different now.

“I’m probably more of the type I don’t really think there has been much change,” Peyton said. “Everybody made a huge deal out of the interceptions last year. From what I saw last year and talking to him and watching game film of him last year — because we played the N.F.C. East — I thought he played well last year.

“Interceptions have their own story; nobody wants to hear it. The truth of it is a lot of things played a role in it — timing with the receivers, tipped balls. At the end of the year, when they don’t make the playoffs, even though they won one more last year than this year, they say 25 interceptions, that’s why they didn’t make the playoffs. Now it’s easy to say he’s made changes, but I’m probably more of a type to say he did pretty doggone good last year.”

Peyton will leave it to others to note that Eli seems to have improved his movement in the pocket this season, refining an ability to slide away from pressure while keeping his gaze downfield.

Still, Peyton points to the workouts that Eli organized at Hoboken High School during the lockout last spring as critical to the way the Giants’ offense has clicked this season. Eli had told Peyton he was sorry to see tight end Kevin Boss and receiver Steve Smith sign elsewhere when free agency finally began after the lockout ended. But Eli had organized workouts with the receivers he knew would be around.

Peyton, who ran similar workouts in Indianapolis until he required neck surgery, said they reminded him of summer workouts in college, when coaches are not allowed around players. The workouts afford the quarterback and his receivers freedom to work as much on one pattern as they want, with no coaches telling them they have to move on to something else.