All week long I've been listening to people say that if Eli Manning wins Super Bowl 46, he will have punched his ticket into the Hall Of Fame. I'll write it again so you know that I was serious...The Hall Of Fame. Not the Hall Of Decent Football Players, not the Hall Of Nice Guys, not even the Hall Of Better Than Most...we're talking about the actual Pro Football Hall Of Fame. Yes sir, the same one in Canton, Ohio. The one where you might find a bust of quarterbacks like Roger Staubach, Johnny Unitas, Terry Bradshaw, Steve Young, Dan Marino, John Elway, and Joe Montana. So, you're telling me that if Eli ends up winning a second Super Bowl, he is automatically on the same level as the aforementioned? Hardly. How about Boomer Esiason, Randall Cunningham, and arguably the best Giants quarterback ever Phil Simms? They haven't even made it into the Hall Of Fame. Is Eli as good a quarterback as they were? Nope. I got it, he's won a Super Bowl. So has Trent Dilfer, Mark Rypien (who has two rings, he was injured for one), and Brad Johnson. Certainly they weren't one Super Bowl win away from the Hall Of Fame...were they? And, what about Warren Moon and Dan Marino? They never won the Super Bowl. Does Eli automatically become better than them?
Listen, let me be clear on one thing...I am NOT anti-Eli! I recognize that he is far better than the average quarterback in the league today. I wish he was the quarterback for my team. All I'm saying is that we need to stop with all this Eli is Elite, Heading to the Hall Of Fame nonsense. This year was clearly his best year as a pro...no argument from me. However, that "Best Year" had him ranked 7th in the league. Behind Stafford and Schaub, and just a fraction above Matt Ryan. In 2010 he was ranked 17th in the league finishing after such names as David Garrard and John Kitna. How did those guys do this year??? In 2009 Eli fared pretty well, just missing the top 10, as well as the playoffs. In 2008, riding high off that Super Bowl MVP performance, Eli fell to 14th. Both Seneca Wallace and Shaun Hill out performed him. And then there is the famous Super Bowl year...25th overall. I won't even name all the people who finished above him that year. You get the point...don't you? He isn't Hall Of Fame material. He is a good quarterback, who's team was fortunate enough to barely make it into the playoffs twice before catching some momentum. He was the MVP of Super Bowl 42...but, should he have been? If some unknown receiver doesn't catch the ball on his helmet...well, who knows. Even still, the Giants defense held one of, if not, the most explosive offenses ever to 14 points. That whole defense should have been MVP. And I know, I know...he's had to crawl out of Peyon's shadow and deal with the New York media. But, if his last name was Jones and he played in Kansas City or Seattle would we even be having this conversation? Probably not.
Eli is young (he is only 31), and could possibly play another five years if he stays healthy. Maybe when it's all said and done he'll have won a few more rings, been selected to the Pro Bowl a few more times (as if that has any merit), or maybe he'll even win a National Football League MVP Award. But as of right now, he's just a good quarterback. If this is the new standard for the Hall Of Fame, what Hall will we put quarterbacks like Bradshaw, Aikmen, Montana, or even Tom Brady and Peyton in? The standard has already been established. Don't lower it because it makes for good conversation during the time leading up to the Super Bowl. Just let them play, and the truly elite will be just that...Elite. No debate necessary.
For more, follow me on Twitter @JustACasualFan
No comments:
Post a Comment