Peyton Manning officially rides off
Soon to be former Indianapolis Colts and Denver Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning is riding off into the Sunset. And a beautiful Sunset it is as he is going out weeks after winning his second Super Bowl. ESPN’s Chris Mortensen reported that Manning will announce his retirement on Monday at 1 p.m. ET after 18 seasons in the league.
According to that report, Manning called key Broncos figures including VP John Elway and coach Gary Kubiak on Saturday night to tell them of his plans. They were ready and planning for this as they have been offering big money to young quarterback Brock Osweiler to keep him from hitting free agency.
But the Broncos organization was no less appreciative of Manning as Elway said, “When you look at everything Peyton has accomplished as a player and person, it’s easy to see how fortunate we’ve been to have him on our team. Peyton was everything that we thought he was and even more — not only for the football team but in the community.
“I’m very thankful Peyton chose to play for the Denver Broncos, and I congratulate him on his Hall of Fame career.”
There was lots to be thankful for as the 2013 Broncos set the league’s scoring record with Manning at quarterback. He threw a record 55 touchdowns that season and 151 touchdowns to 59 picks with the Broncos, not bad for a player in the twilight of his career. And for the entirety of his career, the NFL’s all-time passing leader changed the game back to how it was.
In the distant past, quarterbacks were true field generals, known for calling their own plays. Then Manning came along with his pre-snap adjustments that put the game back in the quarterback’s hands. No quarterback in league history was better at reading defenses and avoiding sacks than Manning was.
In addition to owning the career yards and passing touchdowns records, Manning won a record five league MVPs. His Super Bowl win in February gave him an NFL record 200 regular season and playoff career wins combined. Manning also became the first starting quarterback to win Super Bowls with two different teams.
And along the way, he made 7 first-team All Pro teams and 14 Pro Bowls.
Congratulations, Peyton Manning!
Sorry, Los Angeles Rams!