10 Reasons NY Giants’ Eli Manning Belongs in the Hall of Fame
By David Solow
Reason #4: Eli Manning’s Super Bowl performances are among the best of all time
The 2007 Patriots still rank among the greatest teams ever. Pro Football Talk has them ranked as the 4th greatest team of all time. Bleacher Report ranks them third. Sports Illustrated ranks them as the 8th greatest team ever and Pro Football Talk has them 16th. They are unanimously considered the greatest team to never win a Super Bowl.
If the 18-0 Patriots finished the job and beat the NY Giants in Super Bowl 42, they would undoubtedly be first on everyone’s list. The team with the greatest quarterback and coach of all time would be the only team to ever go 19-0.
A 27-year-old Eli Manning’s late-game heroics, combined with some awesome defense, prevented the 2007 Patriots from achieving perfection.
Manning’s SB XLII performance ranks 11th best among QBs by PFF. Manning was given credit for five “big-time throws“; the second-most ever in a Super Bowl. Four of the five big-time throws took place in the 4th quarter; a quarter in which he completed all three of his pressured attempts. This includes one attempt that got stuck to David Tyree’s helmet.
Eli Manning’s Super Bowl XLII performance was so impressive because of the clutch factor and slaying football’s Goliath. His Super Bowl XLVI performance was so impressive because it was close to being perfect.
In defeating Brady and Belichick in the Super Bowl rematch, Manning had four big-time throws, 296 yards, and a 75% completion percentage. In a fitting end to a masterful 2011 season and playoff run, Eli registered a 103.8 QB rating, once again outdueling Tom Brady.
Eli Manning’s SB XLVI performance ranks as the second-best ever by PFF (Aaron Rodgers in Super Bowl XLV ranks first). Eli had 14 pass attempts under pressure and ended up with a perfect adjusted completion percentage, according to PFF.