He's one of the nicest and most humble players you'll ever meet. At age 37, he has to be one of the hardest-working football players ever in order to achieve the success he's had. This season he set NFL records for most yards (5,477) and touchdowns (55) in a season. After Super Bowl XLVIII, Richard Sherman was on his way to the press conference, limping on crutches, when someone tapped him on the shoulder. When he turned, it was Peyton Manning asking how he was. Even in defeat, Manning is classy and gracious. His attitude and demeanor are those that you look for in people; he has
what it takes to win championships and create a legacy that might never
be equaled; but he hasn't.
The regular season is merely the qualification round for the playoffs. If you don't get to the playoffs, this year is a failure. If your team gets to the playoffs but doesn't win games, it's a failure. And if your team loses the Super Bowl, it's a failure. The Super Bowl loser may as well have the number one pick in the NFL draft...there are no moral victories. Peyton is on his way to putting up the most prestigious regular season numbers in NFL history. But those don't really matter do they? Do fans and teams want regular season records or Super Bowl titles?
Peyton HAS won a Super Bowl! He beat the Chicago Bears in XLI and won the game MVP. Now a Super Bowl is a Super Bowl, but let me put this in perspective: he beat Rex Grossman. Um, who? Grossman in that game had one of the lowest QBR's in the history of the Super Bowl at 7.1 Peyton's QBR last night was a paltry 24.4, which is the lowest since Grossman's game. Since he beat the Bears, Peyton is 0-2 in Super Bowls, and was part of the reason for each loss by throwing a pick-six in both.
The conclusion of this post is this: players don't win championships, teams do. Number 1 offenses have gotten to the Super Bowl before, but Denver's scored a record-low 8 points. A more successful quarterback by far was Terry Bradshaw, who had 212 touchdowns in the regular season and 210 interceptions. And yet, he won 4 Super Bowls. Success isn't measured by what you do in all your games, it's measured by what you do when it counts. And when it counts, Peyton is a mediocre 1-2.
While he may be the nicest, most respectable quarterback the league has ever had, he hasn't created a legendary legacy. His legacy is one of big game chokes and failed opportunities.
