Eli Manning a Hall of Fame semifinalist, but won’t be a Hall of Famer

“Get back to me in five years,” one selector told me flatly. “Seriously, we got a lot of guys to get into the Hall of Fame. And he can wait.”

“Somebody’s gonna have to convince me that he belongs in the Hall of Fame at all,” another selector said.

Other selectors were less emphatic, though no less critical.

“I think he’s a Hall of Famer, eventually,” said one. “If we are talking seven or eight years from now, and we’re talking about putting Eli Manning in the Hall of Fame for two Super Bowl MVPs and creating some of the greatest moments in the history of the game, I’ll buy that. That’s cool.

“But don’t try to tell me that he is one of the greatest quarterbacks of his generation.”