The Pro Football Hall of Fame has announced its list of 15 finalists for the class of 2026. Four first-year eligible candidates join a group of repeat finalists hoping this will be the year their venerable careers are recognized with a gold jacket and bust in Canton, Ohio.
One of those returners is former New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning. The two-time Super Bowl winner was a finalist in 2025 but failed to garner enough votes to become a first-ballot inductee.
Fifteen modern-era players have been announced as finalists for the Pro Football Hall of Fame’s Class of 2026, presented by Visual Edge IT. https://t.co/dSVkYszj9s @EliManning @Giants pic.twitter.com/t3oBl7Vt5n
— Pro Football Hall of Fame (@ProFootballHOF) December 30, 2025
Manning's eligibility for enshrinement has been a controversial topic ever since he decided to hang up his cleats in 2020. His career is a mixed bag of mediocre stats and iconic accomplishments that leave many fans wondering if recognition in Canton would cheapen the honor.
Making the case for Eli Manning as a Hall of Famer
While many Hall of Fame inductees are granted the distinction from career numbers alone, Manning has plenty of categories that could be cherry picked to harm his case. However, many others are immortalized for their distinct and awesome contributions to the game of football and the NFL's legacy. Manning has enough of those on his resume to earn him a bronze bust.
For starters, the Giants QB led the team to two Super Bowl victories in four years - both involving the toppling of the sport's greatest player of all time. Manning is the only QB in NFL history to vanquish Tom Brady twice on the league's biggest stage. Not only that, but he led the 2007 Giants - a wild card team - on a playoff campaign that literally ended the first potential 19-0 season in history.
Nobody else can ever say that on top of earning a pair of Super Bowl MVPs - a list that only includes five others all-time with two or more. Dan Marino, a Hall of Famer, can't claim those accolades.
Manning was also one of the most clutch passers of his time. He orchestrated 37 game-winning drives and 27 fourth-quarter comebacks, two of which were immortalized in Super Bowls XLII and XLVI.
Granted, this year's finalists list has some elite names. Drew Brees, Larry Fitzgerald, Reggie Wayne, Adam Vinatieri, etc. But compared to last season, Manning actually has a better case for inclusion among these legends.
Making the case against Eli Manning as a Hall of Famer
Now, this is where the scrutiny gets harsh. But it's necessarily harsh. Winding up in Canton should be the most difficult thing for a player to do besides winning a Super Bowl. Manning's stats are the first line of defense against his detractors and, well, they fall quite easily upon inspection.
Manning finished his career as a .500 quarterback, posting a 117-117 all-time record (8-4 in the playoffs). His 57,023 career passing yards and 366 touchdowns are each good for 11th all-time but his 244 interceptions are a real blemish on his resume. Among those already in Canton, Manning would have the eighth-highest total in that turnover category.
Some potential Hall of Fame candidates still playing today like Russell Wilson and Aaron Rodgers have undergone scrutiny for how their latter years and swan songs will affect their chances of induction. Manning went 9-26 as New York's starter in his final three seasons and only recorded seven winning seasons in 16 years as a Giant.
There's enough there to convince voters that other finalists with less concerning resumes deserve their spot in Canton this year but that's not to say Manning won't find his way there eventually.