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Tuesday, July 5, 2005
Manning is the audible master
By Bob Carter
Special to ESPN.com
Signature Game
Jan. 4, 2004 - Incentive came easily for Peyton Manning in the wild-card playoff game against Denver at the RCA Dome. He had lost in his first three NFL postseason appearances, the most stinging the Indianapolis Colts' 41-0 embarrassment against the New York Jets the previous year.
The sixth-year pro took little time in changing that trend and his lowly postseason quarterback rating of 59.1. He threw four touchdown passes in the first half, completing 16-of-18 passes for 327 yards, and the Colts took a 31-3 lead on the way to a 41-10 victory.
Manning finished 22-of-26 for 377 yards, five touchdowns and a perfect quarterback rating of 158.3, the fourth of his career. "It was awesome from the sideline," Colts coach Tony Dungy said.
Odds 'n' Ends
Never fast, Manning ran a 5.8 40 in eighth grade and got it down to 4.8 in high school.
Besides football, Manning played baseball and basketball in high school, quitting the basketball team after a disagreement with his coach.
Manning began wearing No. 18 while a high school junior in honor of older brother Cooper, who had worn the number. They had played together the previous season.
Manning intended to follow Cooper to Ole Miss until the latter was forced to quit football in his freshman year because of spinal stenosis, a narrowing of the spinal cord.
A prep All-American, he was recruited nationwide. He narrowed it to Mississippi, Florida and Tennessee before choosing the Vols.
While Manning was still in college, his father Archie took out a $5 million-plus policy on him with Lloyds of London - insurance against a potential career-ending injury.
Durable throughout his career, Manning suffered his first football injury when he sprained a knee against Arkansas on Nov. 16, 1996. The first-quarter injury limited his lateral movement, but he still threw for 282 yards and three touchdowns in a 55-14 victory.
One of the few college lowlights for Manning was his 0-3 record as a starter against Florida, although he did pass for 492 yards in their 1996 game.
At a college awards banquet, Manning spent most of two hours chatting up NFL quarterbacks, snaring whatever tidbits he could.
Manning graduated with honors with a 3.6 GPA, completing his B.A. in speech communication in three years. He was chosen for the GTE Academic All-American team, was named the National Football Foundation Scholar-Athlete of the Year and received the NCAA Top Eight for Outstanding Senior Student-Athlete in Athletics, Academics and Community Service.
Tennessee's all-time passing leader, Manning threw for 96 touchdowns, including bowl games, and became the first Volunteer football player to have his jersey retired.
In 1998, the season after Manning left Tennessee, his successor at quarterback, Tee Martin, led the Vols to the national championship.
In the NFL, Manning threw at least one touchdown pass in 55 of his first 59 starts.
In 1998, he set rookie records for touchdown passes (26), yards (3,739), completions (326) and attempts (575).
When he led the Colts to a 13-3 record and the AFC East title in 1999, his second season, the 10-win improvement from 1998 was the biggest turnaround in NFL history. His 90.7 quarterback rating that year led the AFC.
On Sept. 28, 2002, Manning threw a team-record six touchdown passes in a 55-21 Colts win at New Orleans, three of them going to Marvin Harrison. He became the first NFL quarterback in more than a decade to have six touchdown passes in a game.
Manning compensates for his lack of speed and mobility with a quick release.
Following the Colts' 41-0 loss to the Jets in the 2002 postseason, Colts kicker Mike Vanderjagt criticized coach Tony Dungy and Manning, questioning their leadership abilities. Manning responded angrily while at the Pro Bowl, calling Vanderjagt an "idiot." The three patched up the disagreement soon after.
On Oct. 6, 2003, Manning rallied Indy from a 35-14 deficit at Tampa Bay in the final four minutes. With their 38-35 overtime victory on Monday Night Football, the Colts became the first team in NFL history to win a game in which they trailed by 21 points with less than four minutes left.
Manning is the only NFL QB to throw for 3,000 yards in each of his first seven seasons.
In Manning's MVP season of 2004 his quarterback rating of 121.1 easily broke Steve Young's mark of 112.8 set in 1994.
He is married to the former Ashley Thompson, a Virginia graduate he met at a Tennessee fraternity party before his freshman year. They live in Indianapolis.
His PeyBack Foundation was established in 1999, designed to help disadvantaged youth. The first PeyBack Classic was held in August 2000, a prep football tripleheader at the RCA Dome that raised funds for the foundation.
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