I've been listening to Clay Travis the past few days on my drive to work and like him or not, he has been outstanding with his Eli being a slam dunk to the HOF argument.
Perhaps his most compelling argument is that if you think John Elway belongs in the HOF, then so does Eli. Career comparisons; Eli has a higher completion %, more TD's, more yards (almost identical attempts per game) both win 2 Super Bowl wins and with Eli having 1 more Super Bowl MVP. Taking into account the teams Eli beat during the Super Bowl runs in some of the toughest environments (beat both Favre and Rodgers in Lambeau, a #1 seeded Cowboys team, 49ers on the road in a game he was getting abused), he says it's a no brainer.
He also feels that most people view Eli as the best #1 overall draft pick in the 21st century and after hearing him read thru the list, I agree. In addition, only 4 QB's drafted #1 overall have ever won a super bowl (Elway, Aikman, Peyton and Eli). Orchestrating 2 come from behind Super Bowl wins vs Brady/Belichik the greatest Coach/QB and team dynasty in history also will carry a lot of weight. Not to mention never missing a game in 16 years, doing it on the biggest stage in NY and all the off the field charity work.
Whether your for or against Eli in the Hall, I recommend giving it a listen.
The clutch, stress-filled, high-pressure successes he had are worth so much more than what's recorded in statistics. His SuperBowl playoff runs were f'n unbelievable to watch through the sway of momentum.
Seems like there were an awful lot of those.
There's been some chatter about Frank Gore this year - I think his career compares favorably to Eli's, even at a different position. Never an MVP or top three at his position, but consistently very good for a long period of time. Tough, respected leader who represented the game well and compiled some great numbers. Gore will get into the Hall of Fame without anyone raising an eyebrow, but Eli will be subjected to a billion hot takes on social media and talk radio, as well as PFF deep dives into every statistic that can be spun negatively.
Seems like there were an awful lot of those.
I count 12.
Criteria: Eli led a tying or go-ahead drive, but the defense crumbled and he didn't get the ball back with time to pull out a win (in this case, less than 30 seconds on the clock).
2005 @Dallas, tied the game with a touchdown pass, Dallas won on the first possession of overtime
2005 vs. Minnesota: TD drive capped by a Tiki Barber run and two-point conversion to tie the score, Minnesota kicked a go-ahead field goal on the next possession. (Giants got the ball back with 10 seconds left, and the attempted desperation play failed.)
2005 @Seattle: That frikkin' Seahawks game. The defense did their job, but the kicker didn't.
2006 vs. Dallas: Eli tied the score with a pass to Burress, the Cowboys scored the game-winning field goal on the next possession.
2006 @Eagles in the playoffs: Eli threw a touchdown to Burress to tie the score, the Eagles put together a five-minute drive to end the game with a winning field goal.
2011 vs. Packers: Tied the game with a pass to Nicks and two-point conversion, defense gave up a game-deciding field goal as time expired.
2013 vs. Dallas: Tied the game with a TD pass to Louis Murphy and two-point conversion, defense gave up a five-minute drive to set up a last-second field goal that lost the game.
2015 vs. New England: Set up the go-ahead field goal, but the defense gave up a two-minute drive that ended with the Patriots kicking the game-winning field goal. (And I will hate this game forever. Beckham should have scored the winning touchdown but started celebrating before securing the ball, and Landon Collins dropped the easiest interception in the world on the next drive.)
2015 vs. Carolina: Tied the game with a late touchdown pass to Beckham, defense gave up a drive that set up Carolina's game winning field goal.
2017 vs. Tampa Bay: Took the lead on a touchdown pass to Rhett Ellison, defense gave up a field goal as time expired.
2018 @Carolina: Took the lead with a touchdown pass to Barkley, Panthers moved downfield to kick a 63-yard field goal to win it (because of course they did).
2018 @Philadelphia: Tied the game with a late field goal drive, the Eagles marched downfield and won it with a field goal of their own. (Eli got the ball back with 22 seconds left and an attempted desperation play failed).
For those that argue the Giants carried him too long, no one ever said that about Aikman, who was done after their last SB. After a disappointing SB hangover season on a team loaded with talent, they had one more last hurrah, lost in first round of the playoff and then he stayed for two more lost seasons. He finished his career much like Manning, albeit physically a mess unlike Eli, who never missed a game due to injury
Agree with this. Passing stats in the past 10-20 years are inflated vs. what they were before because of the changes in the rules and the way the game is played. Elway was always one of the top QBs during his era.
You'd be surprised.
I had a Giants fan tell me on Twitter yesterday that Eli is basically just getting into the HoF because his last name is Manning and he won 2 Super Bowls...totally dismissed everything else.