Why Eli Manning and his .500 record belong in the Hall of Fame
Despite Super Bowl rings and big plays, "Manning fatigue" may hurt his case. That would be a shame because Eli was a master of NFL moments.
From the outside looking in, Eli Manning does not come across as someone desperate to get into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. He is already a proud product of the NFL’s royal family and a two-time champ who is more prolific as a pitchman than he ever was as a passer.
He’s got the life, in other words, and he doesn’t need a gold jacket in Canton any more than he needed a green jacket at Augusta National, where Manning joined brother Peyton as a member. Eli is everywhere these days, hawking Jersey Mike’s subs with Danny DeVito over here, hanging with his big bro on “Monday Night Football” over there. And maybe you’re a little tired of seeing the former New York Giants quarterback and current Hall of Fame finalist wearing that mischievous smile while the rest of creation is working real jobs for real-world wages.
“I think there is Manning fatigue now,” said Hall of Fame voter Gary Myers, the longtime NFL columnist and broadcaster who is charged with presenting Eli’s case to the selection committee in the coming weeks.
In the wake of Tuesday’s announcement that Manning is among 15 modern-era players chosen as finalists for a second straight year, that fatigue combined with Eli’s 117-117 career regular-season record could form the weapon that terminates his shot at induction … for a second straight year.
That would be a shame, too, because Manning earned his home in Canton. The hard way.
If the Hall of Fame were only about win-loss records and stats, Joe Namath wouldn’t be in there. The former Jets quarterback went 62-63-4 as an NFL starter, threw 220 interceptions against 173 touchdown passes, and won a postseason game in only one of his 13 seasons, and yet few would argue that he doesn’t belong in Canton. As the man who delivered on his Super Bowl III guarantee by toppling the mighty Baltimore Colts, Namath is among the most important figures in league history.
Broadway Joe is a Hall of Famer because that honor is also about moments and circumstances.
Eli Manning was a master of moments and circumstances.
He upset Packers legends Brett Favre and Aaron Rodgers in playoff games at Lambeau Field, beating Favre in Ice Bowl conditions without wearing a glove on his throwing hand.
Manning did not just beat the greatest quarterback of all time (Tom Brady) and the greatest coach of all time (Bill Belichick) in Super Bowl XLII; he stopped the 18-0 Patriots from becoming the greatest team of all time with a 12-play, 83-yard drive in the final minutes defined by his Houdini-like and athletic (believe it or not) escape that set up David Tyree’s helmet catch.
"The Helmet Catch"
Eli Manning to David Tyree