In one of Peyton Manning's most difficult seasons, he is being touted as an NFL MVP candidate. What does that tell you?
It merely provides confirmation to the long-held view that Manning will end his career as the most prolific passer in NFL history. And it might not be close.
He will start his 176th NFL regular-season game Sunday against the Tennessee Titans. No one expects him to finish it.
The Indianapolis Colts can neither help nor hurt their playoff positioning. It's a preseason game in December with one exception. The numbers count.
Manning's numbers will count more than anyone's. The 176 starts to open an NFL career is a record for quarterbacks. He needs just 93 yards passing to reach the 4,000-yard mark for an NFL-record ninth season.
Both the starts and yards were in jeopardy in July when Manning underwent preseason knee surgery. Media and fans wondered if Manning would start the opener. His teammates didn't.
"It would take a broken leg to keep him out," Colts center Jeff Saturday said at the time.
Manning started the opener against the Chicago Bears, although you couldn't tell it by the numbers. The Colts lost 29-13, and Manning had only one touchdown and 257 yards to show for 49 pass attempts.
It was an inauspicious beginning for a franchise that had won 12 or more games for five consecutive games. The Colts lost two of their first three games and four of their first seven. The bye week wasn't much better for Manning, who stood helplessly on the Tennessee sideline as his alma mater lost to Auburn.
But in the second half of the season, Manning's Colts did what his Vols couldn't. They turned their season around, overcame key injuries and reeled off eight consecutive victories. What a difference a quarterback makes, huh?
Few quarterbacks in NFL history have made as much difference as Manning. He has 17 NFL regular-season records, seven Pro Bowl records and six playoff records. He's only 32, ranks fourth all-time in touchdown passes and is already Hall of Fame-certified.
Imagine what he will do with five more NFL seasons. Unless Brett Favre plays until he's 50, Manning will pass everybody in passing.
An average season for Manning dwarfs the career years of your average Pro Bowler. This season's numbers are magnified by the circumstances.
Marvin Harrison, Manning's go-to receiver for most of his career, is averaging only three receptions per game. Running back Joseph Addai, who rushed for more than 1,000 yards each of the previous two seasons, is averaging under 50 yards rushing per game and has missed four games with injuries.
The star receiver drops off. The best running back gets hurt. But the quarterback keeps going and throwing.
Manning rarely has thrown better than he did in his last game, against Jacksonville. Never mind that Harrison and Addai were out. Manning was on.
He completed his first 17 passes. He completed 29 of 34 for 364 yards and three touchdowns. He led the Colts from a 14-0 deficit to a playoff-clinching victory.
That's the fourth time this season Manning has led the Colts to victory after they trailed by a double-digit margin. He's the hottest player on the NFL's hottest team.
And in a season that started out all wrong, he's now the right choice for league MVP.
Sports editor John Adams may be reached at 865-342-6284 or adamsj@knoxnews.com.
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Comments » 30
1manningfan writes:
Hail to the chosen one! Manning you got my vote for MVP!
jimr07 writes:
can hardly wait to be reminded how bad he was. go Tee. peyton was a wasted jersey, gave away games blah blah blah. he is such a loser, nafy that is.
jimr07 writes:
not only as a football player but a great human being.
BleedOrangeForever writes:
What a privilige it has been to watch the greatest QB ever play, in my lifetime. I was at Neyland for his first and last game and several in between, what a ride it was.If you really love the dissection of plays and how they develop you have to love what Peyton does at the line of scrimmage, very special once in a lifetime QB. And does anyone else think it is ironic that he plays for the same team that the great Johnny Unitas did?
Madkels writes:
I don't think being scrreewed out of the Heisman ever bothered him. He let his actions on and off the field do the talking. May success continue for Peyton!
PoochPuntOn3rdDown writes:
Do you have a job? Are you not getting any? Do you need a hug? Come on, man, it's just a message board. Don't take yourself too seriously, because I'm sure no one else does....
murrayvol writes:
Some things change Madkels. Human nature isn't among them.
Being screwed out of the Heisman when you clearly deserved it would bother anyone, including Manning.
movol77 writes:
Now Rob...cool down, stop the slander and repent. ;)
AllVol2008#1353998 writes:
Are you stupid or something?
movol77 writes:
Rob...first you preach faith in JC. Then you slander. Now you lie. Which JC are you following? ;)
ctownvol writes:
Poor naf. The hate is gonna eat that dude alive.
10volunteers98 writes:
I`m a Christian,too.But,name
me one time you ever heard Peyton Manning "brag".Only
time I ever heard him brag
was about the rest of the team.Not himself.He indeed does have a lot of accomplishments to brag about.But he doesn`t.
ncvol17 writes:
Well Peyton's pretty darn good but JC has won more MVP's though his career has been a bit longer. If every citizen could be as good a person as Peyton we would have a much better country.Of course there's always the snake offering an apple...you in this case
iowavol writes:
Ah Jon, this just isn't you. YOu are much more comformtable slamming every VOl you can - why through kudos to Manning - trying to win back a couple of fans who would just as soon watch suffer in pain rather than throw you a blanket? Well, son, it won't work. You are scum, have always been scum and always will be scum. Beside that, you suck!
WeLoveTennesseeVols writes:
Tells me he should have been Heisman, so why wasn't he?
scott_m99 writes:
Rob...Please Die
AllVol2008#1353998 writes:
Are you stupid or something? You morons are probably just planted here to make normal people angry to sell advertising or something. And it works! you're still stupid as sh-t.
dave_olympia writes:
Greetings from the state of Washington. I am a UT grad circa late 70's and fellow UT fan for life. Couple of comments about this thread:
1. I have lived in quite a few cities and regularly read lots of city newspapers and have never seen the kind of hate so many enjoy throwing at Adams. Gotta say I just don't get it; he's your average sportswriter trying to avoid provincialism while still being a fan. Nothing unusual at all about him. If he graduated from another school you can't expect him to be completely rabid about UT but I don't see any blatant anti-UT leanings from him either. He's far too average to warrant those kind of feelings. Sounds like mob mentality to me.
2. I don't agree at all that this is a Peyton Manning fan site but most UT fans of any age are huge fans of the guy. We had 4 exciting pro-style years to watch him at UT and he went on to become the smartest and hardest working QB in the NFL with a style that is always exciting - the no-huddle offense with decisions made on the fly. What's not to like if you're a UT fan?
MarineDad writes:
Greetings back @ ya. In regard to #2, it looks like we've got a couple turds in the sandbox ...
STNVol09 writes:
Let's guess who your candidate is....Jared Lorenzen??? MVP of tubby-ville?
JTinCharlotte writes:
Kind of new here, I don’t post much, just mostly read trying to find news about my favorite team. Is this guy stupid? I don’t think it’s ignorance; ignorance can be curded and stupidity is forever and I can’t find one informative post by him. I know he has a right like anyone else to post and I hate to come on here and write about him but he is in the way of reading decent posts. Why doesn’t the board programmer add a ignore button?
JWilly writes:
At the time of the Charles Woodson Heisman, Peyton Manning was the the #2 rated college QB EVER! Charles Woodson was a cornerback in a run-oreinted league. He had two incredibly good games on Natl. TV in front of large audiences. None of the rest of his games were nearly as impressive as those two. The replays of some of Woodson's best plays in that game were replayed continuously on ESPN. I think it would be fair to say that Charles Woodson was the first wholly ESPN generated Heisman trophy winner. Woodson has certainly had a sucessful Pro career but it is tiny and insignificant when compared to Peyton's Pro career. I do not believe Woodson will make the NFL "Hall of Fame". Peyton is a first ballot lock for the HOF. I am sure Peyton will demonstrate a lot more class at his HOF induction than Woodson did after his Heisman award. ESPN must have played the clip of Woodson dissing UT and Peyton a thousand times. It was truly nauseating.
blitzshoot writes:
Did you and hiresanders elope?
Where are you registered?
murrayvol writes:
Very perceptive JT.
The longer you stay, the better you will become at separating the wheat from the chaff.
JayTee writes:
Losing to Florida four times and with Tennessee's only loss to Memphis State as starting QB should make him a shoo in.
tenacjim#211887 writes:
First off, this article refers to the MVP of the NFL so I don't think Florida, Memphis (or Jesus for that matter)will come into play. For the record (I know this has been explained before), Manning only started three games against Florida. So for everyone who likes to throw his losses to Florida, Memphis and Nebraska out there to bash him, please add Alabama 1994 to the mix and you will have covered EVERY game Manning lost as starting QB at Tenn. All six of them....
TommyJack writes:
Now you're on to something. Naffy = Casper the ghost. White as a sheet.
daschmit#297884 writes:
Dave,
Adams has merely taken a brief hiatus from his anti-UT diatribes, presumably because Fulmer has, of course, been removed and Kiffin has yet to do anything on the field to incur his wrath. He and David Climer (Nashville Tennessean) are two peas in one sarcastic pod.
daschmit#297884 writes:
You are utterly without credibility. In the aftermath of Woodson's prima donna posturing, even some of the Heisman Trophy panelists and officials were ashamed to have bestowed their award on him.
ncvol writes:
Peyton Manning is the man....I do not think of him as a God or Jesus Christ. I think of him as a great human being that made the University of Tennessee proud. If this article was about Reggie White or others that played at UT, then we would be sending praises in their direction. Peyton is a good guy on and off the field and he deserves all the praise he gets. Peyton for MVP...Go Vols!
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