Is Peyton Manning in the Hall of Fame?

There are always a handful of professional athletes who are so famous that even those who do not watch the game are aware of them and the legacy they have left behind. Peyton Manning is one such former great NFL quarterback. Even before Peyton stepped foot in the NFL, he was already the talk of the town due to his impeccable high school and college career. The 5-time league MVP and 2-time Super Bowl champion set numerous records during his days and some like 14 4,000 passing yards season, most touchdowns thrown in a single season (55) still stand to date. His 2 Lombardi trophies came with two different franchises in Indianapolis Colts and Denver Broncos.

Peyton Manning’s early life

Born in 1976, Peyton is the second son of Archie and Olivia Manning. He grew up as a die-hard football fan and watched his father play the game professionally as a quarterback for the New Orleans Saints. Archie Manning was a great quarterback himself, but his teams were never competitive enough. However, this never deterred Peyton, but only willed him to become better.

Growing up in New Orleans, he attended Isidore Newman High School where he excelled in the quarterback’s role. So much so that he had offers from nearly 60 colleges that wanted him to play for them including Florida, Florida State, LSU, Michigan, and Tennessee just to name a few. Ultimately, he decided to pursue his college career at the University of Tennessee where he led the Volunteers to 39 wins out of 45 as a starter which is the SEC conference record for most wins.

In four years, he became Tennessee’s all-time leading passer with over 11,000 passing yards. At the same time, he put up 89 touchdown passes against only 33 interceptions and earned a plethora of awards.

Peyton Manning in the NFL

With the first pick overall in the 1998 NFL Draft, the Indianapolis Colts had probably the easiest decisions ever with Peyton Manning sitting there ready to enter the league. When the Colts drafted him, they knew what they were getting in their quarterback who possessed good arm strength, outstanding accuracy, the ability to read the defense, and a player capable of thinking on his feet.

Peyton took a less-than-mediocre team and developed them into perennial playoff contenders starting from just his second season with the franchise. Although the Super Bowl eluded him for the first seven seasons, he always had the Colts in the hunt. Manning led the league in various stats across multiple seasons while he was a member of the Colts franchise. Unfortunately, though, all the success that he had in the regular season did not amount to much in the postseason, as he was only able to win one SB in 14 years at Indy.

In 2012, when Manning was snatched by the Denver Broncos as a free agent, he again led the team to four consecutive postseasons which included two Super Bowl appearances and one ring. In his second year in 2013 with the Broncos, Manning put up NFL records with 5,477 passing yards, 342.3 yards per game, and 55 passing touchdowns. All of those records still stand today.

Peyton Manning’s accomplishments in the NFL

The overall list of accomplishments for Peyton Manning’s career is extensively long. However, some of the most important achievements of his career are as below:

• 2 time Super Bowl champion (Super Bowl XLI and Super Bowl 50)

• Super Bowl MVP (XLI)

• 5 time NFL Most Valuable Player (2003, 2004, 2008, 2009, 2013)

• 7 time First-team All-Pro (2003, 2004, 2005, 2008, 2009, 2012, 2013)

• 14 time Pro Bowl (1999, 2000, 2002–2010, 2012, 2013, 2014)

• 3 time NFL passing yards leader (2000, 2003, 2013)

• 4 time NFL passing touchdowns leader (2000, 2004, 2006, 2013)

• 3 time NFL passer rating leader (2004, 2005, 2006)

• 2 time NFL completion percentage leader (2003, 2012)

• NFL 2000s All-Decade Team

• NFL 100th Anniversary All-Time Team

• PFWA All-Rookie Team (1998)

• 3 time Bert Bell Award (2003, 2004, 2013)

His five NFL MVP awards are the most by any player in the history of the NFL. In addition to that, both the Indianapolis Colts and the Denver Broncos have recognized Manning in their Ring of Honor and both have retired his no. 18 jersey. Manning has more accolades to his name than this and if we are to include his college career then it only adds to his overall legacy.

Has Peyton Manning been inducted into the Hall of Fame?

Peyton Manning is a member of the 2021 Pro Football Hall of Fame. As we have seen from his list of achievements, Manning has had a career that most people can only dream of. As a matter of fact, most of the NFL players who reach the highest level of the game also cannot boast of so many accomplishments as Manning.

All of the feats that he accomplished on the turf over a period of 18 years have put him in the best-to-ever-do-it category which is definitely worthy of a Hall of Fame induction. In recognition of the same, Peyton Manning has been enshrined into Canton, Ohio’s Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2021. Incidentally, Manning was also inducted into College Football’s Hall of Fame in 2017.