I can't be the only one thinking this at this point. This guy is more hype than actual substance. Sure he threw for over 4,000 yards each of the last four seasons. That is fine. But, lets look at is interception #'s. Lets look at his performance in big games. Lets look at how he leads the team to playoff defeat after playoff defeat. Since Tennessee he couldn't win a big one and it continues now. All you hear from the media is that he is so smart. He steps up and calls so many audibls, look at how he reads that defense. And then, the ball is in the other teams hands and the Colts are whimpering out of the playoffs. Sure he is a good quarterback, he is definately an NFL starting quarterback, but to keep mentioning his name as one of the elite quarterbacks in the league is a joke. He's an overated piece of crap.
Peyton outthinks himself too much. He steps to the line, makes about 35 reads, changes the play EVERY play and loses in the playoffs. Make the simple read and run the play, Peyton.
Seriously...why does he do that? I mean with the guys he has on offense, just run the play already! I think Peyton tries to make everything perfect, instead of just playing.
Im not the biggest Manning fan, but I think this thread should be about Indy's D. They are absolutely atrocious. I saw the Redskins rip them to shreds this year! The Redskins!! I knew they were gonna get slaughtered by NY yesterday. Manning had an up and down year - but their D was the real culprit.
I can't wait until Parcells drafts Chris Simms to continue the tradition of the greatest franchise for quarterbacks in the history of the NFL.
It doesn't help that the Colts have NO running game whatsover. You can be the best passer out there, but if you don't have a good running game to support you, you will fail repeatedly in playoffs games. Ask Dan Marino how helpful the running game was to him during his tenure in Miami. Or Dan Fouts for that matter. One helluva QB, but no real running attack during his time with the 'Bolts.
Parcells is coaching the 49ers? As for Manning, I'm betting they're still pretty happy they took him over Leaf.
Okay, not that I'm an Indy or Peyton apologist or anything, but there a bunch of factors for the Colts laying an egg in that playoff game (and for several games this season), and they don't just fall on Peyton. First, as SoccerAndy5 points out, without a running game, the Colts were pretty much lost. Remember, Peyton is by far at his best when he has a running game which he can play action off of. With the decline of Edgerrin James, the Colts simply weren't the same team. Keep in mind, the one game where Peyton looked superhuman (against my beloved Eagles, who have the best defense in the NFL) is where James Mungro (Syracuse grad - woohoo!) gave the Colts a great running game. Second, combine the ineffective running game with the loss of a second receiver (Quadry Ismail, who got hurt a few weeks ago, and is also a Syracuse grad), and defenses can now essentially triple cover the Colts' one big threat: the amazing Marving Harrison (a Syracuse grad as well). I'd like to see any traditional pocket-passer type QB move the ball without a running game and with only one true receiving threat. That is too much to ask of anyone. Now, third, as QPR Kevin points out, the Indy defense is also as much to blame for their woes. Dungy's cover-2 scheme is a great defense against the pass. However, it is horrible against the run (at least with the players that Indy had). It is built to rush the passer with players like the great rookie Dwight Freeney (yep, Syracuse grad), but they don't have players to stop the run. So, it all results in: Poor offensive production + Inability to stop teams when they run the ball = Recipe for playoff disaster, regardless of the QB. So, is Peyton an great QB? Yes. Is he one of the all time greats? No, not yet, and might never be. Would I want him QB my team? Maybe. Not if I have Farve, Vick, McNabb, Garcia, or Gannon, but otherwise....probably.
I'm not talking about just this playoff game....I'm talking about his whole career. He hasn't done anything to take his team to the next level. As for this season. Edgerrin James was 11 yards short of 1000, lets not act as if the Colts had no running game at all.
Indy's defense isn't really Dungy's defense just yet. I've been a Colts fan since I was 7, and I'm not dissapointed by this season; with the bottoming out of the Colt's D over the last couple of years, this was clearly going to take some time. Another season or two and I suspect the Colts' D will be vastly improved, and the Colts will start making noise in the playoffs. Edgerrin James is not washed up, he's still not 100% after his injury of last season. I suspect he will be next year though, if the Colts don't try to trade him...hey you never know, the Colts had Marshall Faulk too, and they could definately use some picks. As someone pointed out, Peyton gets himself in trouble when he takes too much on his shoulders, tries to do too much while the rest of the team isn't playing well. His dad did the same thing. I think Peyton will be a great quarterback, once all the pieces of the puzzle are together in Indy, the pieces being shoring up the D (especially at DB and DL, the LB's are ok), another deep-threat WR, and depth in the OL.
Hmm. This is an interesting debate. Which team has the greatest QBs? If we're going to look at the Super Bowl era, I'd still go with the Cowboys who almost always have had a great QB (except now). Even Danny White was pretty damned good. I'd put the 49ers #2, but I could be persuaded that they were #1. The Packers have had Starr and Favre, but a whole lot of crap in between. Who else could be considered? Miami with Griesie and Marino. I think that's about it for the first tier.
And keep in mind what division the Colts play in, and what level of competition that division had. James simply is NOT 100 percent recovered from the knee injury. It was pretty obvious.
What? You mean NFL Films isn't hard at work on a new video entitled "Peyton Manning's Greatest Big Game Victories"???
I'm not sure he's mentioned in that First Tier of NFL Quarterbacks anymore. I think a lot of guys have passed him in the public's perception. But if the Colts made him available tomorrow, you think they'd have any trouble finding a taker? And Chris Simms a great NFL quarterback? I can't see that happening. Though it would be interesting to see him coached by the same guy who coached his father. And while I haven't seen a whole lot of Chad Hutchinson, I can't see where it would take a whole hell of a lot to be better than him. Great Cowboy Quarterbacks: Roger Staubach Troy Aikman You're not going to put Don Meredith, Craig Morton, or Danny White on that list, are you? It doesn't take many great quarterbacks to make the list of Greatest QB Franchises Ever, but there are more names on there than just Dallas. San Francisco has Montana and Young, obviously, but John Brodie was a very good QB, and Jeff Garcia could make it there if he keeps it up. The Redskins have had Sammy Baugh, Sonny Jurgensen and Joe Theismann, who all won championships. There aren't that many Hall of Fame quarterbacks, if you look at it.