My use of the word "manual" was referring to flying losing the finer points of Delta Path.
Delta Path is always available, even in manual mode. Tactile feedback to the pilot is reduced in manual mode. If the flight control system has degraded to the point that Delta Path is lost, flight control is lost. A carrier landing is moot at that point because the pilot will be hanging from his parachute.
Super Hornet's "Magic Carpet" is the same.