Eli Manning is a divisive figure among NFL fans. He’s one of the defining quarterbacks of his generation, a Super Bowl winner, and a massive name.
His CV doesn’t stack up to other greats from the 21st century, though, and it’s hard to know where to place him in the ranking of the greatest quarterbacks of all-time.
Maybe he wasn’t a popular pick for MVP among those who bet on NFL outright markets, but Manning has a clear place in the story of the league since 2000, even if he’s not the most decorated quarterback in his family.
How Much Is Eli Manning Worth?
Eli Manning net worth is thought to be in the £130 million range. Manning is 12th all-time in NFL career earnings at the time of writing, behind his brother, Kirk Cousins, Jared Goff, and others.
Away from the gridiron, there were plenty of other income avenues for Manning. As a star quarterback in New York, he was among the most marketable athletes in North America throughout his career.
He worked with Visa, Gatorade, Nike, and Toyota among others. Each of those deals will have been lucrative for a public personality of his profile.
Since hanging up his cleats, he has teamed up with his brother to produce the Manningcast on ESPN, along with Eli’s Places on ESPN+. The pay packet for these two productions will surely have been sizeable.
Hall of Fame
Eli Manning is eligible for the Hall of Fame for the first time in 2025. The debate is bound to be fierce.
Two Super Bowl rings is usually enough to get a quarterback into Canton. When he won his second, Manning was a seeming lock for a place in the Hall.
His career tailed off dramatically in the final three seasons, though, and the quality of quarterback play in his generation will work against him with some voters.
There were no All-Pro selections. He made just four Pro Bowls. The marquee moments are there with the two Super Bowls, but Manning’s career statistics pale in comparison to Tom Brady, Drew Brees, Aaron Rodgers, and his brother, Peyton.
Was his career as a whole definitely better than his fellow 2004 draftees Philip Rivers and Ben Roethlisberger?
It's going to be a polarising topic. Some will believe Manning is a lock and should cruise in on his first ballot. There’s a lot to unpack when voting time comes around.
Draft
Eli Manning was selected first overall in the 2004 Draft. The San Diego Chargers initially picked Manning, though he had made it clear he was not interested in playing for them.
The knock-on effect was one of the biggest trades in NFL history, with San Diego flipping Manning to the New York Giants almost immediately.
Manning was a Charger for just 45 minutes. New York selected Philip Rivers, who was sent to San Diego along with the Giants’ 2004 third-round selection and their first- and fifth-round picks in 2005.
Rivers, of course, had his own lengthy NFL career, playing for the Chargers until 2020, when he joined the Indianapolis Colts for a season.
There were 15 Pro Bowlers in the first 27 picks, including seven of the top eight. Along with Manning and Rivers, Larry Fitzgerald and Ben Roethlisberger also went in the first round.
Rivalry With Tom Brady
Tom Brady had a 2-1 record against Eli Manning in the regular season. When it mattered most, though, Manning got the better of the consensus GOAT, with the New York Giants defeating Brady’s New England Patriots in Super Bowls XLII and XLVI.
The relationship between the two is complex. No one can argue that Brady had a worse career than Manning. Yet, Manning has the ultimate trump card in a pair of Super Bowl triumphs.
Having one over the greatest quarterback the sport has ever seen is a pretty special achievement for Manning. It puts him in a unique club and one that allows him to occasionally mock Brady to this day, leading to tweets like this.
Manning posted, “I thought about attending the Roast of Tom Brady last night, but I did not want to Roast him for a 3rd time!!”
The relationship is friendly. There is no bad blood between the two, even if their social media interactions could be interpreted otherwise.
Would anyone of us let Brady forget that we’d beaten him twice in the Super Bowl? I certainly wouldn’t.
Brothers
Eli Manning has two brothers, Cooper and Peyton. Peyton is a two-time Super Bowl winner and five-time regular season MVP. Cooper is a television personality and entrepreneur.
Despite his own immensely successful NFL career, Eli was never able to beat his older brother in the NFL. Eli had an 0-3 record against Peyton in the league.
All three are sons of Archie Manning. Archie also played at quarterback in the NFL and was twice named to the Pro Bowl in the 1970s.
Super Bowl Wins
Eli Manning won two Super Bowls. They were two of the most dramatic live betting occasions in recent NFL history. Manning won Super Bowl XLII and XLVI over the New England Patriots, claiming Super Bowl MVP on both occasions.
These were Manning’s only two Big Game appearances, dropping 255 yards in XLII and 296 in XLVI. He won the Giants’ third and fourth Super Bowls in franchise history.
Reflecting in 2021 about his Super Bowl wins, Manning said, “But it was not me versus Tom Brady, it was the Giants versus Patriots…
“It’s an entire team win, and anytime you play against a team like the Patriots under Bill Belichick, you have to play very smart football. If I’m playing in that game, I don’t want to give them easy opportunities by turning over the football.
“Especially in the 2007 season, when we were 12-point underdogs—no one was giving us a chance—you just go compete and do your job. In the 4th quarter (of Super Bowl XLII) we had an opportunity to win the game, with two minutes left to go and down by four. We stepped up at the right time.”
Career Stats
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236 games
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60.3% pass completion
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57,023 yards
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366 passing touchdowns
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4.5% touchdown rate
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244 interceptions
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7 yards per attempt
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11.6 yards per completion
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241.6 yards per game
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411 sacks
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27 fourth-quarter comebacks
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37 game-winning drives
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125 fumbles
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7 rushing touchdowns
Honours and Records
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Two-time Super Bowl champion
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Two-time NFC champion
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Two-time Super Bowl MVP
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Four-time Pro Bowler
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Most consecutive completions to start a Super Bowl (9)
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Third all-time for most consecutive starts by an NFL quarterback
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Most passing yards in a single postseason (1,219)
*Credit for the photos in this article belongs to Alamy*
