Bill Belichick is not a first-ballot Hall of Famer
USA TODAY FTW’s Prince Grimes explains how six-time Super Bowl winning head coach Bill Belichick missed out on being inducted into the Hall of Fame on the first ballot.
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Bill Belichick isn’t the only NFL legend who will wait at least another year to be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
According to The Athletic, former New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning, famous for two upsets of Belichick’s dynasty Patriots in Super Bowls 42 and 46, also missed out on the 2026 season. This was Belichick’s first year of eligibility and Manning’s second.
Manning is one of six players to be named Super Bowl MVP multiple times. He’s the only non-Hall of Fame player eligible for the Hall of Fame, so it makes sense that Tom Brady and Patrick Mahomes would waltz into Canton.
Manning’s overall history seems to be holding him back.
He was a Pro Bowler four of his 16 NFL seasons, a modest number considering his longevity. By comparison, his older brother, Hall of Famer Peyton Manning, won the league MVP award five times. Eli Manning’s regular season record of 117 wins and 117 losses is the definition of average.
Eli Manning ranks 11th in league history in both passing yards (57,023) and touchdowns (366), and perhaps those numbers deserve more recognition given that he played so many games in the windy and often adverse conditions typical of the New Jersey Meadowlands, where the Giants play their home games. But his 244 career interceptions, 60.3% completion percentage and 84.1 passer rating don’t add to his cause.
Drafted No. 1 overall in the 2004 draft by the San Diego Chargers, Manning was never intended to play for the Bolts, but that wasn’t the case, and his rights were traded to the Giants on draft day in a deal that sent the Chargers a package of Philip Rivers rights and picks (including a 2005 first-round pick that was ultimately used for Shawne Merriman).
“I’m excited for the guys that came out,” Manning said on NFL Network after being bypassed last year. “They’re all very valuable people. I’m happy for them.
“I feel completely at ease. Nothing will change the way I look or feel about my career.”
I hope it continues for at least another year.
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