Michael_ Gee said:
Dan, it's one thing to say the Broncos won't get back to the Super Bowl, which is reasonable and in fact a prediction I agree with, and another to say they're going to struggle to reach double-digit wins., since even weaker Denver teams have had a pretty significant home field advantage. It's unlikely Manning will be as productive as in 2013, since he set all those records, but it seems to me equally unlikely he'll plunge below career norms.
This.
People forget that Peyton Manning was putting up those numbers while playing with a high ankle sprain much of the season. No, that doesn't mean he's going to throw 60 TDs this year if he stays healthy. But I sure don't expect him to come crashing down to 20 TDs. A 40-TD season is certainly within his grasp, especially because he has good receivers.
I will agree that the Broncos weren't physical enough in the Super Bowl, but that's a big reason they signed Aqib Talib and T.J. Ward, because those guys are physical players. They also shuffled around the offensive line a bit. Zane Beadles was terrible in pass protection, so they let him walk, moved Orlando Franklin to guard and are letting Chris Clark play right tackle.
I will admit part of the reason I picked the Broncos to go to the Super Bowl is the Bronco fan in me, but another part is because, assuming everyone stays healthy, they should have a better offensive line and a better defense than they had last year. Of course, "assuming everyone stays healthy" applies to a lot of teams, but back to Peyton...
I find the comparisons to Brett Favre to be laughable. First of all, Favre made it no secret he wanted to play for Minnesota when it was made clear he wasn't going to be welcome back in Green Bay after his first "I'm retired... no, I want to play" ordeal. He got his wish two seasons later, got his chance to beat the Packers and claim a win over every team, then ran into a physical Saints team in the playoffs. Then he played his "do or I don't I" game that offseason and it all came back to haunt him.
There are legitimate criticisms of Peyton Manning, but you can't criticize him for playing "do I or don't I" games in the offseason. He didn't make a huge fuss when the Colts released him, understanding it was a business decision. The media may have followed him around to every visit he went, but he didn't talk himself up a lot. He just goes about his work.
I personally believe Peyton will want to play for two more seasons, and whether he plays after that will depend on how close he is to certain records and whether he wants them or not. I think people who still say "the neck injury" are now blowing it out of proportion. Peyton's taken quite a few hits and he's been fine. That doesn't mean he won't have a career-ending injury, but it doesn't mean it's his destiny to have Favre's final season in the NFL, either.
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