It is a perfect ending for a nearly perfect career, and now Peyton Manning has the chance to do what so few men in his profession get to experience.
It was an opportunity no one could have imagined on the afternoon of Nov. 15, 2015 at Sports Authority Field at Mile High in Denver. It was then that Manning looked like he was finished. He looked like an old man hanging around one year too long, like Joe Namath and Johnny Unitas, who didn’t know when it was time to walk away and tarnished their legacies as a result.
Manning had thrown four interceptions that day against the Chiefs, and he was benched for the first time in his 18-year career. Manning’s young backup, Brock Osweiler, took over and looked as if he’d be up to the task of leading the Denver offense in place of his ageing teammate.
But as it turned out, Manning’s problems were not simply the function of a man who couldn’t do it any longer, but the direct result of a foot injury that severely limited his ability to throw. Still, who could have imagined all this when Manning went back in the lineup in the regular-season finale after Osweiler was struggling against the Chargers and homefield advantage in the AFC playoffs was in doubt.
Manning’s foot had finally mended to the point where he became functional again. And while his deteriorating arm strength wouldn’t allow Manning to become the quarterback he once was, he was good enough to be the game-managing quarterback that coach Gary Kubiak had envisioned. A quarterback who could be just good enough not to screw it up and to give the defense, which is the heart of this team, the chance to win games on its own.
Manning might not be able to out-throw the quarterbacks who came his way in the playoffs, but he was certainly able to out-think them, and that’s a huge part of the resourcefulness he summoned to make one more — and most likely last — championship run.
Manning and defensive end DeMarcus Ware offered emotional speeches to the team the night before the Super Bowl, and the quarterback appeared to tear up as he talked about how much his team had been through to get to the point. And while he never said anything definitive about whether he might retire, the arrow certainly pointed in that direction.
Manning was hardly the dominant quarterback against the Panthers that he had been during the peak of his career. In fact, his stats were downright mediocre -- 13-for-23 for 141 yards, no touchdowns, one interception and a 56.6 rating. But it was good enough to give his defense a chance to win it, and that’s exactly what happened.
There is no way Manning beats the Panthers with his arm, but there was no way he could lose with his defense playing this well.
He did suffer his first interception since returning to the lineup, but it wasn’t a fateful blow; the Panthers could not convert the turnover into any points. Manning’s fourth-quarter fumble did give the Panthers the chance to pull to within one score, 16-10, with 10:21 to play. But Miller rescued Manning once more with his second forced fumble of Newton, and the Broncos upped the lead to two touchdowns and allowed Manning to join John Elway as a two-time Super Bowl winner.
He is the oldest quarterback to win a Super Bowl, surpassing Elway, and he is now the first starting quarterback in NFL history to win a Super Bowl with a second team.
With Father Time continuing to bear down, the answer seems as obvious now as it will once Manning reflects after the postgame emotion has subsided:
It is time to walk away. After all, there can be no better ending than this.