Let me preface this whole thing by saying I'm very much a Peyton Manning fan. Not only is he a great QB but he seems like an all-around good guy. Plus he makes funny commercials. Now, let's get started....
I'm sick and tired of all the praise being heaped on Peyton lately. Yes, he has the Broncos 3-0 right now and looking like the best team in the NFL. Yes, he's been untouchable in terms of touchdowns. Yes, he's looking more and more like the Peyton that lead the Colts to the Super Bowl 2006. But pump the brakes just a bit before we anoint him.
Who have the Broncos played this season? No one, that's who. They beat the Ravens and Raiders at home and he punked his little brother's team in New York. These teams are nowhere near the top of the league. The Ravens are a shell of themselves from a year ago, the Giants are the biggest mess in the NFL, and the Raiders are, well, the Raiders. It's not like Peyton took the Broncos to Seattle and laid a beatdown on the Seahawks. He's been very good against bad teams. I'm not trying to diminish his amazing start, because it's been literally record-setting, but praising him like he's beating the cream of the crop is just ridiculous.
My next point is one that has bothered me for years. Peyton Manning is not the Greatest Quarterback of All-Time. Is he high on that list? Of course he is. But he's not the GOAT. There are quite a few guys who jump to my mind that I feel are better overall QBs than Peyton. Steve Young, John Elway, Tom Brady, and Joe Montana all are more impressive to me than Peyton. Their postseason record speaks for itself. Montana was 16-7, Young was 8-6, Elway was 14-8, and Brady is 17-7. Peyton is 9-10. I'm sorry, you can't be considered the GOAT if you have a losing record in the playoffs. I mean, put it this way, had Peyton lost in the Super Bowl in 2006 he'd have the exact same postseason record as Dan Marino. And as much as I love Marino, he definitely isn't the greatest QB to have every played the game.
I'm not going to dig in to the veteran QBs like Sammy Baugh, Johnny Unitas, Roger Staubach, Otto Graham, or Bart Starr. I just don't have the energy. If you don't know those names, look them up. They're some of the best to have ever played the game. Peyton just doesn't measure up.
I get it, his accuracy is surgical. His drive is amazing. But he doesn't adapt. There's a reason Peyton has been so good in the regular season and not so good in the postseason. I heard it explained like this. Peyton prepares for every game the same way. He breaks down teams and figures out how he's going to attack. That's great for the regular season when the majority of your games are against teams who don't measure up on the talent/athleticism level. But when you're in the playoffs, you have to step your game up. It's not that Peyton doesn't, it's that he can't. He's already prepping and playing at the highest level possible. So when the playoffs come around and teams go to another level, Peyton can't do the same thing. His brain doesn't work like that. I don't know if that makes sense to you, but it makes perfect sense to me.
Again, I'm not saying Peyton isn't a great QB. I'm not saying he isn't one of the best of all-time either. I'm just saying he's not on the top of the list. He's also doing exactly what a future Hall of Famer should against bad teams so far this season. Thinking he's going to keep up this torrid pace is nothing short of ridiculous.
All that being said, I could not be happier to have him on one of my fantasy teams.
Follow me on Twitter- @TwittinSports
