Bill Belichick falling short of election to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility was the biggest story to come out of this year’s voting, but former Giants quarterback Eli Manning also missed out on being elected for the second year in a row.
Manning’s two Super Bowl wins over Belichick’s Patriots are seen as a major plus for his candidacy while detractors have pointed to less stellar results over his entire career as the reason why Manning should not be enshrined. That view has won out thus far and Ben Roethlisberger, Rob Gronkowski, Adrian Peterson, and Richard Sherman are some of the notable additions to the ballot for 2027, so Manning’s status might not change the next time he comes before the selection committee.
Manning told former NFL head coach Jon Gruden on Gruden Goes Long that he isn’t making a big deal about the way the voting has played out so far.
“I think it’s one of those deals,” Manning said. “It doesn’t keep me up at night. I’m not going to be bitter at it. I’m not bitter at the game of football. I loved my teammates. I love the relationships, the friendships, the championships, the parades. When I think about football, I think about touchdowns and my buddies and wins and plane rides home. I don’t think about the interceptions. I don’t think about the bad stuff. I think about the positive things. If I ever get in the Pro Football Hall of Fame, I’ll take it as a positive and I’m not gonna think about the years I had to wait to get in.”
Manning has many years left on the modern-era ballot and his first two years of eligibility suggest that the merits of his case for inclusion will continue to be debated for some time.
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