If this is the last rodeo for Peyton Manning, it has been a hell of career. He leaves the game the only way a man like Peyton Manning deserves to leave.
Manning by all accounts did not play a great game, but he and his team won the Super Bowl. If he leaves on this note, he and his GM John Elway are the only two QBs to leave on the highest of notes, a Super Bowl champion.
Courtesy of EPA/ Tannen Maury
He achieved his second Super Bowl ring but he was not MVP, as most predicted. Von Miller lived in the backfield of the Carolina Panthers, giving him the MVP. Peyton Manning won his 200th game with the win. No other QB ever won more games in their career. Brett Favre is second with 199 wins. Also this postseason Manning came in with the postseason with a 11-13 postseason record. This postseason record is something that haunts his career a little bit. But now with this postseason monkey off of his back we may now be able to give Peyton the title he deserves…the greatest QB of all time.
Here are some stats to back it up.
Previously stated, he has 200 wins in his career, has 2 Super Bowl rings, and now has a postseason record over .500.
Peyton is the leader in touchdowns passes with 539 TDs. And the only active QBs close to Peyton are Drew Brees and Tom Brady. Favre is second with 508.
Manning is also first in passing yards with 71,940 yards. Second once again is Favre with 71,838 yards. Brees is the second active, 4th overall, with 60,903 yards.
Manning is second in passing completions with 6,125 completions and the leader is Favre with 6,300 completions.
Manning has the record for most passing TDs in a season with 55. In that same season, he passed for the most passing TDs in a game with 7.
With this win, Peyton is the 12th multi-Super Bowl Ring winning QB.
Peyton has 5 NFL MVPs, 14-time Pro-Bowler, and has been selected to 7 All-Pro Teams. When Peyton has played at least one game in a season, he has only missed the playoffs once.
With these stats and so much more, Peyton is a first ballot Hall of Famer. Peyton Manning is the example of a professional. He is a member of the first family. He has been the barometer all QBs want to be for a long time. He changed the way the game has played. QBs in shotgun for most of the snaps was weird before Peyton broke the mold. And Peyton is the mold. Peyton is the high standard of playing ability, leadership, professionalism, and class.
The game will miss the Sheriff if he leaves. And if he decides to come back, who are we to say he should not?