The two-time Super Bowl winner will eventually be inducted into the Hall, and when he is, those insisting he was entitled to a first-ballot entry will seem just as silly as those who never wanted him to get in.

The insistence that Manning must be enshrined alongside the likes of Joe Montana, John Elway, Dan Marino and his brother, Peyton, is what invites the holes that get poked in Manning’s resume, leading with his 117-117 (.500) career regular season record.