Drew Brees reveals if he thinks Eli Manning should be in Hall of Fame

Whether or not New York Giants legend Eli Manning should be a Hall of Fame quarterback became a polarizing topic among NFL analysts and fans even before he rode off into the sunset of retirement following the 2019 season. 

Meanwhile, New Orleans Saints legend Drew Brees was recently inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. During a chat with Scott Thompson of Fox News Digital, Brees was asked if he thinks Manning should be selected as a Pro Football Hall of Famer. 

Drew Brees: Eli Manning earned Hall of Fame via "his body of work"

"Yeah, he is," Brees said. "It's always funny to hear how people want to evaluate the quarterback position. I mean, look, there's so much that goes into it. It's body of work, it's consistency, certainly championships factor into it. I think when you look at all those things, it's hard to argue the things that he accomplished in his career with his two championships, and then, you know, his body of work and his consistency."

Brees was referencing how Manning earned Super Bowl Most Valuable Player Award honors on two occasions, helped the Giants defeat the previously unbeaten New England Patriots in February 2008 and was involved in two of the most iconic plays in Super Bowl history. 

That said, Manning also retired with a 117-117 career regular-season record. Additionally, he was never viewed as being in the same tier of quarterbacks occupied by the likes of Tom Brady, Peyton Manning, Ben Roethlisberger, Philip Rivers and Aaron Rodgers as it pertains to overall accomplishments. 

For the second time in two years, Eli Manning fell short of being selected as a Pro Football Hall of Famer this past winter. Brees disagrees with those who didn't vote for Eli. 

Drew Brees: Eli Manning was part of a generation of elite quarterbacks

"I think overall, I look at this era that we had a chance to be a part of," Brees added about Eli Manning. "It started with Peyton. You go Peyton, Tom Brady, my draft in '01, and that ‘04 draft was impressive with Eli, with Philip [Rivers]. With Ben Roethlisberger and then Aaron Rodgers coming the year after that. I kind of look at that as kind of an era of quarterbacks that we all battled against each other, man. It was some epic battles, too, when you look at them. I think we all brought out the best in each other in a lot of ways because we knew what we were going up against week in and week out."

It remains to be seen if Eli Manning will eventually be enshrined in Canton.