What say you? Sounds like he will get in.
But they are wrong. I like Eli. A lot. He is tough, a gamer and brought me two Super Bowls so I will always cherish his time here but he should NOT be in Canton.
He was fucking horrible in WAY too many games and just average in too many others as his .500 record will attest. He stacks up poorly with his contemporaries in virtually every comparable stat and doesn't even pass the eye test.
Think about it.
Brady, Montana, Peyton, Marino, Elway, Unitas and.......Eli?
He played very well in a handful of play-off games but his entire career was mediocre.
Hall of Very Good? Maybe but not even sure about that. Hall of Fame? Ummmm.....no.
For the exact reasons you cite. I would put him in the same Hall that Doug Williams belongs in, the Hall of "He had a few great games". Well in Doug Williams case, he had ONE great game. lol
Moving on to current events, despite the Ravens getting bounced out early, I think we have a decent SuperBowl match up that should please the fans and the networks. I think BOTH KC and SF earned their place in the big game after their performances today.
My early pick for the SB despite the firepower of KC and Patrick Mahomes is San Francisco. They have just looked solid on both sides of the ball and if KC starts off as slow against them as they have the last two games, SF will just run the ball down their throats and never give them the chance to get back into the game.
If Mahomes has a great game which he is very capable of, it may not matter what SF does.
On the other side of the coin, Mahomes will have never faced a pass defense like this one. They combine a ferocious pass rush with excellent secondary play. If Mahomes was a pocket passer, I would give the Chiefs zero chance but he isn't and he will pressure SF.
In the end I think SF defense and incredible running game win this but I think its going to be very tight.
I think he'll get in. 2 rings (pretty much every eligible QB with multiple rings is in), he played in a big market, he's part of a football family and he's in the top 10 in yardage, completions and TDs (though that's mainly a function of the era he played in and his ability to stay healthy)
I think he'll get in. 2 rings (pretty much every eligible QB with multiple rings is in), he played in a big market, he's part of a football family and he's in the top 10 in yardage, completions and TDs (though that's mainly a function of the era he played in and his ability to stay healthy)
Jim Plunkett has 2 rings. Is he "hall worthy?"
And with regards to those rings...what were the scores of the two super bowl wins? I will tell you...17-14 and 21-17. Not exactly an offensive juggernaut, right??
Now I am not saying he didn't play well in those games, he did, but those teams were defense dominated teams. Eli was more of a game manager type.
If you break down his yardage on a per game basis he is behind Brady, Peyton, Brees and Rodgers and he is behind them by a wide margin. No shock there for they are all certain HOFers right?
Ok but then if I told he trails Roethlisberger, Rivers, Stafford AND Matty Ice, would that surprise you? The first two MAY get into the HOF, debatable, but the last two? Ummmm....no
Eli was a stat compiler. He was tough as nails and didn't miss games but that doesn't make him a GREAT player, it makes him a super durable one.
Eli led the entire NFL THREE times in picks and NONE of those were his rookie year. He never won a League MVP and never even made one All-Pro team.
There was a reason for that; he was never a "great" player and the hall should ONLY be for truly great players.
I agree with most of your points but the SHOULD Eli get into the Hall of Fame and WILL Eli get into the Hall of Fame are 2 different arguments. Should he get in? No. Will he get in? Yes
I never saw Plunkett play, so I can't judge is Hall candidacy but there are those who argue that he should be in.
If Eli Manning had the exact same career but his brother and dad weren't former QBs, and he played in Tampa and never won a ring, we would not having the "Is Eli a hall of famer" argument.
I'll bet he does go to the HOF on the strength of his two Super Bowl MVP wins but far from sure he deserves it. He should have retired years ago.
I'll bet he does go to the HOF on the strength of his two Super Bowl MVP wins but far from sure he deserves it. He should have retired years ago.
There's a committee of sports writers. Here are the details....
will objective criteria override subjective criteria?
Did Eli Manning break my heart, more times than once, by having sheerly horrible seasons, while bringing down the entire team with him? Absolutely!
Was Eli Manning's play well, below average in his waning years? Maybe more so than most quarterbacks who had long careers and who once possessed elite skills. The evidence is overwhelming.
Did Eli Manning overstay his welcome? He should have retired two years ago!
BUT having said all that, two superbowl championships, TWO superbowl MVP awards and impressive QB stats in a number of categories are quite compelling.
The question is will Eli earn the votes? 1) three NFL QBs WERE voted into the HOF without winning a superbowl; Warren Moon, Sonny Jurgensen and Dan Fouts. 2) only one NFL QB was NOT voted into the HOF after winning two superbowls, Jim Plunkett. Plunkett also won ONE superbowl MVP award.
Tough call, but with two superbowl rings and TWO superbowl MVP awards Eli edges past Plunkett. My guess is Eli's SECOND superbowl MVP award will help Eli squeak past the finish line and he WILL be a HOFer.
They are mediocre. With any player you have to compare him to his contemporaries and that is where he falls miserably short, in addition to not having a winning record.
His MVP's are weak ones. You know those Super Bowls were primarily won by he defense and not by Eli and the offense. He played well, no doubt, but he wasn't great in either of them.
Will he get in? Different story. SHOULD het get in? Hell no.
And this is coming from someone who loves him and thinks he is gritty as hell.
The question is how much value do you place on his two SB MVP's against the dynasty that is the Patriots and a couple of non on the field related factors: Namely that he was the QB for an historic franchise, that he's a man of high integrity/character, that his last name is Manning, that he's a Man of the Year recipient, etc. These are not robots voting on the Hall, they are men/women who do take into account non football related factors as I described... It matters.
You then have to weigh those factors against the fact that in no time in his career was he ever a top 3-5 QB in any season and in my opinion the biggest knock on him is that despite winning two SB's, in the other 14 seasons, the Giants did not win a single playoff game... Eli basically had two magical 4 game runs (in 2007 and 2011).
At the end of the day, he will get in. The positive will out weigh the negative.