It is certainly hard to narrow down Pro Bowl selections to just six quarterbacks, but New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning certainly deserved more love for a selection. Despicably, he finished ninth in voting for his position. If one were to dissect his season, they would understand he deserved more love than he got.

Looking at where he ranks in important quarterback stat categories, Manning certainly was among the best. He is currently sixth in passing yards with 3,900. He is 14th in completion percentage, but ranks 10 spots higher than Aaron Rodgers and just minuscule points behind Carson Palmer — both were selected to the game. He is tied for third in touchdown passes. Only Tom Brady and Cam Newton have thrown more TDs than he has in 2015. Manning is eighth in passing yards per game with an average of 279. That average is higher than Pro Bowl QBs Russell Wilson, Newton and Rodgers. His 96.1 passer rating ranks higher than Rodgers, who arguably had one of his least effective years in quite some time.

It’s hard to say who wouldn’t make the game in place of Manning. Wilson caught fire at the end of the season and surely deserved it, as did Palmer, Brady and Newton. Even the “down” year by Rodgers was still pretty worthy of a selection. The questionable one is Ben Roethlisberger. Big Ben has missed four games this season and, although his stats are solid for the time he has been on the field, something should be said of missed time from injury. He has been banged up all year, while Manning has been consistently on the field despite the hits he takes behind his offensive line. That field time should be valued. Due to his lack of game time, Roethlisberger has only thrown 18 touchdown passes compared to Manning’s 32. Big Ben has also thrown one more interception than Manning in four less games.

What really makes Manning’s case is what he’s done with the team around him. He has down this with a young, and sometimes ineffective, offensive line that features a rookie left tackle and a second-year center. Injuries mounted on the line too. He’s done this with a hugely ineffective running game , which certainly affects the coverage he sees in the secondary. Manning has also done it with basically one wide receiver, who is constantly double-covered and keyed on. Albeit, he is one of the best receivers, Manning still has had little help beyond Odell Beckham Jr. He has certainly worked hard to find ways to get him the ball.

Players like Dwayne Harris, who has never been a pure receiver, Rueben Randle, who has underachieved all season, and Will Tye, who was a practice squad player for the early season, have been key targets for Manning. He has put up these numbers with targets like that. It speaks volumes for just how great Manning has been. He certainly has not been a problem for the Giants this season.

In the end, it’s just the Pro Bowl and it’s not a highly regarded game, but it’s the respect from voting that players deserve. Manning deserved more. Perhaps with Super Bowl participants and players deciding not to play due to injury, Manning will find himself in anyway. He certainly was a Pro Bowl quarterback in my mind.

Andrew Frosceno covers the New York Giants, college football, college basketball and MLB for www.Rantsports.com. You can follow him on Twitter, Google or Facebook.