Peyton Manning among 15 finalists for Pro Football Hall of Fame 2021 class.

Peyton Manning is among 15 finalists for the Pro Football Hall of Fame’s Class of 2021.

The quarterback, owner of a record five NFL MVP awards and two Super Bowl titles, was the first finalist revealed by the hall Tuesday night.

In 18 pro seasons and 265 starts after being the top overall draft choice by Indianapolis in 1998, he had 14 seasons with 4,000-plus yards passing.

Manning held NFL records for career passing yards (71,940), career passing touchdowns (539) and consecutive seasons with at least 25 passing touchdowns (13) when he retired.

Joining Manning as a finalist was one of the players he threw to, wide receiver Reggie Wayne, a finalist for the second time. First-year eligible Calvin Johnson and second-time finalist Torry Holt also made the cut among receivers.

Four defensive backs, including current San Francisco 49ers General Manager John Lynch, advanced. Charles Woodson

made the cut in his initial year of eligibility. Ronde Barber and Leroy Butler are also on the list.

Other finalists are defensive linemen Jared Allen and Richard Seymour; linebackers Zach Thomas, Sam Mills and Clay Matthews; and offensive linemen Alan Faneca and Tony Boselli.

Voting will be conducted later this month, with the inductees announced during Super Bowl week. A maximum of five modern-day players can be chosen, along with three previously announced candidates should they get the required votes: coach Tom Flores, contributor Bill Nunn and senior Drew Pearson.

Inductions are scheduled for next August, when the 2020 class and a special centennial class also will be enshrined after the coronavirus pandemic forced postponement of those ceremonies last summer.