More than two decades ago, Charles Woodson beat out Peyton Manning for a prestigious award during their college days. Something called the Heisman Trophy.
They’re likely about to share an even more impressive honor for the sport to which they devoted so much of their lives: entry into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
Manning and Woodson were college stars at Tennessee and Michigan, respectively, who went on to become two of the most dominant players at their positions in the NFL from 1998 until their retirements in early 2016. Now they are among four first-year-eligible finalists for enshrinement in Canton, Ohio, and Manning and Woodson are among the leading contenders for induction among all those up for consideration in 2021.
Hall announcements will be part of the NFL Honors Show at 9 p.m. Saturday on CBS – which will also televise Super Bowl LV between the Kansas City Chiefs (16-2) and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (14-5) at 6:30 p.m. Sunday – a ceremony during which The Associated Press will also announce its award winners for the 2020 season.
Manning and Woodson made the NFL’s All-Decade Team for the 2000s, and they carried their prolific production into the next decade. The only five-time league MVP, Manning quarterbacked the Indianapolis Colts to two Super Bowls, winning one, and then took the Denver Broncos to two more, winning one.