" Got lured into a discussion the other day on Kurt Warner's Hall of Fame chances. My buddy said no way. So I punched him. Not physically, but I punched him in terms of oratory and debate points. It was not pretty.

There might be debate about Warner, but it will be token and brief. Should Saturday prove to be his final game before retirement, he has done enough.

I think Kurt clinched it in the playoffs last week, in Arizona's epic 51-45 ousting of Green Bay, when he completed 29 of 33 passes for 379 yards, five touchdowns and no interceptions. The playoffs magnify a player's Hall résumé, especially a QB's.

Warner's career including two league MVP awards merits Canton even without the postseason. The 32,344 passing yards are about what Troy Aikman had, and better than 16 other enshrined QBs, including Terry Bradshaw, Joe Namath, Roger Staubach and Bob Griese. His 93.7 passer rating is sixth all-time. His 7.9 career yards-per-attempt is better than Manning or Tom Brady.

Warner also has the storybook background. He's a milk-drinking feel-good tale. The religion he wears on his sleeve might be over-the-top to me, but it'll fly nicely with Hall voters. So will his being undrafted and stocking shelves at Hy-Vee Grocery in Cedar Rapids when he finally got his big break.

The Warner discussion got me thinking what a bounty this weekend's final-eight playoff teams represent in terms of future Hall of Famers. Here's my handicapping of the guys still alive in the postseason:"