Eli Manning was unaware the Giants had cut butter-fingered receiver Preston Parker on Tuesday until Manning showed up at practice — and Parker didn’t.

“No one told me,” Manning admitted to reporters, arching his eyebrows as he spoke.

No one told the rest of Manning’s teammates, either, but that didn’t keep the message behind the move by Tom Coughlin from coming in loud and clear to his 0-2 team — make plays or find a new job.

The Giants released Parker just two days after the veteran slot receiver dropped two more critical passes — giving him five drops on the young season — in last weekend’s 24-20 home loss to the Falcons.

Coughlin made the move even though it appeared to leave his team shorthanded at receiver a little more than 48 hours before Big Blue has to turn around and play again on a short week Thursday night against the 1-1 Redskins at MetLife Stadium.

Manning’s response to the move was intriguing. Not only did the Giants neglect to tell their franchise quarterback they had cut one of his top available targets, but Manning also was made to look a little silly by the team after he gave Parker a public vote of confidence on Monday.

Coughlin initially explained Parker’s release Tuesday by telling reporters he needed the roster spot to re-sign former Jets defensive tackle Kenrick Ellis, who was among the Giants’ final preseason roster cuts.

“Well, we thought we needed another defensive lineman, to be honest with you,” Coughlin said. “So that was the decision.”

But asked if he was making a statement to the Giants by abruptly sending Parker packing, Coughlin smiled and said: “I’ll leave that up to you [reporters].”

Parker, a fourth-year pro, had five receptions for 43 yards in the first two games but will be remembered more for what he didn’t catch. He had three crucial third-down drops in the 27-26 loss to the Cowboys, then two more drops — including one on fourth down that ended the game — against Atlanta.

Parker also will be infamous with Giants fans this season as the receiver Coughlin kept over James Jones, who has three TD catches in two games after returning to the Packers.

Coughlin wasn’t entirely cold about Parker’s exit, though.

“Preston Parker, for the majority of time he was here, was a very tough, physical football player who made plays when called upon,” Coughlin said. “That hasn’t been the case necessarily this year. We thank him for his service.”

The move left some confusion in its wake, because Victor Cruz (calf) has shown progress, but isn’t expected to play against Washington, and the Giants are short on replacements for Parker in the slot.

The initial thought was veteran returner Dwayne Harris or sixth-round pick Geremy Davis from UConn would fill Parker’s spot in the slot. But Rueben Randle said after Tuesday’s workout he has practiced in the slot this week and indicated he expects to fill that role against the Redskins.

Coughlin would only say that all his receivers can play the slot.

“They can all go in there,” he said.

Davis said he didn’t find out about Parker’s release until Davis attended the receivers’ daily position meeting Tuesday and Parker’s chair was empty.

“This one hurts a little, because that’s somebody that was in our [position meeting] room,” Davis said.

For second-year linebacker Devon Kennard, Parker getting his walking papers just two days after playing such a big role in the Giants’ offense underscored why it is often said that NFL also stands for “Not For Long.”

“I was good friends with Preston, so you definitely notice [him being gone],” Kennard said. “You just realize how cutthroat this business can be at times. And it’s hard. It’s easy to forget about that, and get concentrated on the Xs and Os. It’s a tough deal.”