Peyton Manning announced his retirement and it is a sad thing not only for his fans but for fans of football in general. He is a once in a lifetime talent. We do have a few hall of fame quarterbacks playing in the league right now, Tom Brady, Drew Brees, and Aaron Rodgers to name, well, all of them. None of them are on Peyton’s level. Even though we are in the era of the quarterback and numbers are somewhat inflated, what Peyton was able to accomplish still stood head shoulders above the rest.
He was in the NFL for 18 seasons and played 17 of them having lost one full season to a neck injury. He played in 4 Super Bowls with two different teams. One of those teams was the Indianapolis Colts that Peyton literally drug from obscurity to make them a perennial contender. He won 5 MVP’s, Let that sink in for a second. In the era of the quarterback he was not only the best QB in the NFL but the best overall player in the NFL 5 times. He has won more MVP titles that Jim Brown, Johnny Unitas and Brett Favre who each took home 3. He won more than Kurt Warner, Tom Brady, and Aaron Rodgers who have each won two. While the book is still open on Rodgers to reach Peyton’s lofty status it is quickly closing on Brady.
Peyton Manning is the all – time career leader in touchdown passes, passing yards and wins. He achieved those records in less passing attempt then Brett Favre while also throwing fewer interceptions in three less years. Dan Marino and Peyton both played 17 seasons but Peyton had over 100 more touchdown passes and 10,000 more passing yards so the stats definitely allude to his greatness.
But it was more than that. It wasn’t just physical talent that made Manning so great. He has a mind for football that is like none other. He could recognize a defense and change the play to counter act what the other team was planning. Not what the other team was doing but what they were thinking of doing. He may have been the closest thing to unstoppable we will ever see. In 2013 he had better numbers than most people do playing Madden Football with 5,477 yards and 55 touchdowns against only 10 interceptions. Even in 2014 he still threw for 39 Touchdowns and over 4,700 yards that was 17 years in the NFL and after a neck injury that would have ended a lot of people’s careers at that age.
Greatest of all time? The numbers prove it, the actions on and off the field prove it. Ultimately that is up to your personal preferences but for my money, and keep in mind that I am a die hard Miami Dolphins fan who has more Dan Marino memorabilia then I have days on this planet, He is the best quarterback I have ever seen play the game.
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