NFL Hall of Fame: Eli Manning is a First-Ballot Hall of Famer
Eli Manning is an NFL Legend, future Hall of Fame Quarterback, and one of the Top 50 Greatest NFL Quarterbacks of All-Time
Now that the Legendary New York Giants Quarterback Eli Manning has retired, his Hall of Fame candidacy has been a topic of hot debate and discussion. There shouldn’t be any debate as to whether or not this man is a Hall of Famer or not. His legacy as the greatest New York Quarterback is set in stone and his place in NFL lore will pass the test of time. He’s a Manning and the list of accomplishments throughout his illustrious career have been grossly undervalued.
Even the biggest Eli detractors can’t deny the fact that his Superbowl moments will live on forever. The David Tyree catch in Super Bowl 42, and the beautiful pass down the left sideline to Mario Manningham in Super bowl 46. These two plays in the Superbowl encapsulate Eli’s legacy perfectly. He always found the “magic” that people called “luck” to come up big in the clutch when his team needed him to make a play.
Ironically these two plays have been the subject of just being “luck” or “lucky”, yet if Manning doesn’t make those plays the Giants don’t win the Super Bowl, and then Manning gets criticized anyway for not coming up big in the clutch moment. This man can never win even when he does. That is the irony of this man's career. His accomplishments never fail to be downplayed by critics and national media outside of New York. But you can’t take away what he’s accomplished or what he’s done throughout his career.
The Numbers speak for themselves, 366 touchdowns (7th all-time), 57,023 Passing Yards (7th all-time), and he is also top ten in pass attempts and completions. 210 consecutive regular-season starts from 2004–2017 (3rd all-time for Quarterbacks). By every measure, this man is also the most clutch postseason Quarterback in the history of the NFL.
You can read the article here for yourself if you don’t believe it. He’s a 4-time Pro-Bowler, 2 time Super Bowl Champion, and 2-time Super-Bowl MVP. People nitpick about his .500 record in the regular season as a starter, yet he’s tied for 11th all-time with Joe Montana in career regular-season wins.
Here is a full breakdown of Manning’s Numbers and Accomplishments in the Regular Season:
- 4x Pro-Bowler
- 366 Touchdown Passes (7th All-Time)
- 57,023 Passing Yards (7th All-Time)
- 210 Consecutive starts by a QB (3rd All-Time)
- 7 seasons of top 10 finishes in Passing Yards
- 10 seasons of top 10 finishes for Passing Touchdowns (including 4 in the top 5)
- 27 4th Quarter Comebacks (13th All-Time)
- 37 Game Winning Drives (10th All-Time)
- Led the league in 4th Quarter Comebacks (5) and game-winning drives (6) for a 9 win team in 2011.
- Carried the 32nd ranked run game, and 26th ranked defense to the postseason in 2011.
- 15 4th Quarter Touchdowns in a season (2011) good for 2nd All-Time.
- 7 Seasons of 4000 Yards Passing (7th All-Time)
- 14 Seasons of at least 3000 Yards Passing (Tied for 5th All-Time)
- 3 Seasons of 30 or more Touchdown Passes (Tied for 10th All-Time)
- 7 seasons of 25 or more Touchdown Passes (Tied for 9th All-Time)
- 12 Seasons of 20 or more Touchdown Passes in a Season (7th All-Time)
- For those who question Eli’s accuracy or completion percentage, consider that he played in rough New York weather conditions at times yet is 11th All-Time with 9 seasons of at least 60% completion percentage (300 pass attempts per season to qualify).
- For those who question his Career Passer Rating (84.1), Eli is tied for 10th All-Time for most seasons with a passer rating of 80 or higher (10 Seasons) minimum of at least 300 pass attempts per season to qualify.
- 5 Seasons of a Passer Rating of 90 or higher (tied for 13th All-Time)
- 117 wins (11th All-Time)
- Most Passing Touchdowns, Passing yards, and Completions in New York Giants History.
Now let's Look at Eli Manning’s Legendary Playoff Resume:
- 2x Super-Bowl Champion
- 2x Super-Bowl MVP (1 of only 5 players to win the award twice)
- NFL Record of Most Passing yards in single postseason 1,219 (2011 Season)
- 9 Passing touchdowns in a single postseason (tied for 6th All-time)
- Game-winning touchdown drives in the last 2 minutes of both Super-Bowls he played in
- 5 Road Playoff wins (2nd All-Time)
- Eli Manning and Tom Brady are the only QB’s in NFL history with 2 Super Bowl MVPs and 50,000 Career Passing Yards.
- Eli Manning has an 8–4 Overall Playoff record with 18 Passing Touchdowns, 87.3 passer rating, 60.5% Completion Percentage, 4 fourth-quarter comebacks, and 5 game-winning drives.
If there were any doubts about Eli’s clutchness, toughness, and durability in big moments just watch the 2011 NFC Championship game between the Giants and 49ers. Manning dropped back to pass 60 times and never turned the ball over. He played that game with the flu. He took a beating in that game, yet still had one of the best performances of his career.
CONCLUSION:
Eli Manning is a “shoe-in” for the NFL Hall of Fame whether haters like it or not. No, he wasn’t Peyton, but when you look at the totality of his accolades, awards, accomplishments, and no off-field issues in a huge media conglomerate like New York. Eli Manning had a legendary Career with clutch and memorable moments that will live on long after he is gone. The list of impressive numbers, stats, wins, comebacks, clutch moments, combined with his legendary toughness, and durability, make Eli not only one of the most overlooked, and controversial QB’s to ever play, but he is objectively speaking one of the 10 best NFL QB’s to ever play as well.
As a die-hard New York Giants fan, I’m forever grateful to have watched Eli Manning play. He was my favorite player and the reason I started watching Football. So thank you Eli for everything you’ve done for the New York Giants Franchise and fan-base.
One of my favorite Eli memories growing up was the Super bowl parade after the New York Giants Super Bowl 46 win versus the “mighty Patriots” Dynasty in 2012. I was in High school at the time and the streets were packed, the atmosphere and the energy were indescribable. I and a couple of my school buddies skipped class that day to go to the parade, and I couldn’t see the Giants players pass as they marched down, so my friends gave me a boost and lifted me to the side of a building window where I saw Eli Manning and the Giants pass by.
As Eli passed by, everyone who could see through the huge New York City crowd just went crazy and screamed out his name. It was a cool moment for me getting to see Eli and everyone calling out for him once he passed by in the Giants Super-Bowl parade. That’s my lasting memory of this Legendary Quarterback who was a role model on and off the field and is everything you can hope for in a number 1 Draft Pick and Franchise Quarterback.
Eli Manning will be remembered as a clutch Champion who came through when it counted. Maybe I’m a little bias because I’m a huge Eli Manning supporter, even so, objectively speaking, there is no doubt he’s an NFL Hall of Fame Quarterback. So get ready Eli detractors, because an Eli Manning Hall of Fame speech is coming in 2025. You can book it!
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