INDIANAPOLIS — The rest of the football world can mull the now-likely prospect of two Manning brothers one day getting into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, but you can count their father out.
Archie Manning, 62, wanted no part of that discussion last night, even after son Eli claimed the second Super Bowl MVP award of his career by rallying the Giants to a 21-17 win over the Patriots at Lucas Oil Stadium.
“Absolutely not,” Manning said when asked if he thought about Eli joining sure first-ballot Hall of Famer Peyton Manning in Canton. “I don’t know anything about the Hall of Fame.”
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Manning, a former standout NFL quarterback himself (but no Hall of Famer), sounded as if he wouldn’t let Eli entertain that possibility, either.
“I know one thing — he might have said earlier in the year that he belonged on the list of elite quarterbacks, but he will not be saying he belongs in the Hall of Fame,” Archie said. “I know Eli, and that’s not him.”
Archie Manning spoke as he stood outside the Giants’ postgame locker room with wife Olivia. Peyton Manning, not surprisingly in light of his recent verbal sparring with the Colts, watched the game in person but was nowhere to be found.
Archie said being the first family of Super Bowl MVPs (Eli has two, Peyton one) had not yet sunk in.
“We’re just kinda pinching ourselves,” Archie said. “To even be here four times in six years is unbelievable, and for the Giants to win another Super Bowl in pretty much the same fashion as the first is just really special. It’s amazing, really, because Eli wallowed around so much that we didn’t even know if he would like sports.’’