One of the biggest games in the NFL year in and year out occurs this weekend, as the Denver Broncos travel across the country to
The most compelling thing about this weekend’s game is
actually Manning himself, who, in his late 30s, is putting up his best numbers
ever. His stats have been so good that if he was a baseball player, we’d
suspect him of using steroids. Manning has no doubt benefited from a softer
NFL, in which the rules no longer allow for defenders to blast receivers going over
the middle, graze the quarterbacks anywhere except the torso, or touch
receivers when the ball is in the air. Still, Manning has been great, and is in
the running to win an unprecedented sixth NFL MVP award.
For someone who loves sports as much as I do, I guess it’s a
little strange that I don’t really passionately root for that many teams. I’m a
huge Braves and Vols fan, but other than that, I mostly just enjoy watching
great players and teams go at it every week. I do have a few favorite athletes
though. Manning has been one of those guys, mostly because of his Tennessee
association. I don’t really remember his time playing for the Vols (I was four
years old during his senior season), but I do remember having an orange shirt
with the number 16 on it, as well as feeling this obligation and push from the
adults around me to root for him. Honestly, I’m not really sure why that was
the case. In fact, I’m not sure there’s an athlete in the country that has a
stronger connection to the fan base of his college team than Manning. I mean,
this dude is universally LOVED by the Vol Nation. Do all the Michigan
fans love Tom Brady, and follow his every step in the NFL? Do all the Cal
fans love Aaron Rodgers, and passionately cheer for him? I don’t think they do.
But with Manning, it’s different.
Because of Manning, I became a Colts fan. I watched as many
of their games as I could, had my grandmother buy me a Manning jersey,
purchased and wore Colts merchandise, and was disappointed when they lost. In
fact, of the ten most devastating sports’ losses of my life, Manning and the
Colts are involved in at least three of them. Any time you flame out as a
higher seeded home team in the playoffs, it’s disappointing (something Manning’s
teams have done 5 times in his career). And when you couple that with his 10-12
playoff record, that’s a lot of heartbreak for a young me to cope with.
In the 2012 off-season, when Manning was released by Indy
and signed with Denver , I didn’t
hold onto my Colts fandom. It probably had something to do with the fact that I
was just a Manning fan, and he was the only reason I rooted for them. I didn’t
become a Broncos’ fan, but I did intently observe them that season. They got
off to a slow start (2-3), but they followed it up with 11 straight wins and ended
the year with the best record in the AFC, giving them home field advantage
throughout the playoffs. I remember lying on the couch in my parents’ house,
cautiously watching their Divisional Playoff game against the Ravens. And in
typical Manning playoff fashion, Denver
lost. Yes, it wasn’t Manning’s fault that Joe Flacco completed that miracle pass over Rahim Moore to Jacoby Jones, but he wasn’t
exactly stellar in that game either (28-43, 290 yards 3 TDs, two picks). Plus,
he committed the biggest turnover of the season with an atrocious throw across
his body in overtime that set Baltimore
up with a short field for what was ultimately the game winning field goal.
After that game, I remember being so frustrated with
Manning, and all of his playoff disappointments re-entered into my mind. There
were so many; the 41-0 blowout at the hands of the Jets in the 2002 Wild Card
Round; back-to-back physical beat downs at the hands of the Patriots in the ’03
and ’04 playoffs; the embarrassing and inexcusable home loss to the 6th
seeded Steelers in the 2005 Divisional Playoffs (Manning’s first loss as a one
seed); the similarly disappointing home loss to the Chargers 2 years later; the
loss as a 12-4 team traveling to play the 8-8 division winning Chargers in the
2008 Wildcard Round; the Super Bowl loss to the Saints when Manning threw a
late, soul crushing, pick six; and finally, the 2010 AFC Wild Card Round loss
to Mark Sanchez and the Jets. But it doesn’t end there. Manning’s teams
have lost their first playoff game eight times in his career, an NFL record.
Now obviously, Manning is just 1 of 53 guys on a NFL roster,
and he doesn’t deserve all the blame for the playoff exits. He isn’t even on
the field half the time. But it’s hard to not be critical of him, because he
does touch the ball more than anyone else, and he’s been so great in the
regular season. He holds/will hold all the passing records when his career is
over, he’s won five league MVPs, and he’s always physically and mentally prepared
to play every game. Plus, it’s not like he’s never gotten it done in the
playoffs. They did win the Super Bowl in 2006, and he led the Colts back from a
21-3 deficit in that AFC Championship game against Brady and the Pats. So he is
capable. And knowing that makes it that much more frustrating when they crumble
and come up short.
In fact, “frustrating” is a perfect word to describe Manning’s
career. I’ve felt frustrated at the end of all but two of Manning’s seasons (2004,
when he broke Dan Marino’s TD passing record, and 2006, when they won the Super
Bowl. And yes, I realize he broke almost every season passing record last year,
but we’ve seen him put up great numbers for about a decade and a half. 2004 was
the first season that he really started putting out those cartoonish numbers we
expect from him. We’re used to it. Now, he’s only going to leave people
ultimately satisfied if they win the Super Bowl). Every other year has ended with
an embarrassing playoff loss. And if you don’t like me describing it that way,
then how about this: he’s had the ultimate “Yeah, but….” career. That’s how he’ll
be remembered. When discussing his legacy, this conversation will probably
happen a zillion times:
Person 1: “Look at those numbers! 500+ TD passes, over
70,000 passing yards, multiple MVPs, etc. Manning’s the greatest of all time!”
Person 2: “Yeah, but he also lost more playoff games than
any quarterback, had more early playoff exits than anyone, and turned into Tony
Romo in multiple playoff games. Don’t you feel like he left a lot on the table?
He had the potential to be the unquestioned greatest quarterback of all time,
and maybe greatest football player in the history of the NFL, but instead, he’s
just ONE of many greats. I realizing I’m kind of splitting hairs, but any time
you’ve got an opportunity to be the greatest to ever do something, and are
given multiple opportunities to demonstrate that you are, only you fail year
after year after year, that’s really disappointing to me.”
That Super Bowl loss last year to the Seahawks was a perfect
example of that. Obviously, Seattle
was better, and they demonstrated that on the field, but there was no reason to
lose that game 43-8. Manning, with just a good performance (they didn’t even
have to win), could’ve given a boost to his historical reputation. But with the
way that game turned out, on that huge national stage, it’s going to be hard
for the public to forget about. It’s been burned into our memories.
Manning’s only hope is to take care of business this year,
run through the playoffs, and win the Super Bowl. Denver has been the best team
in the league for the first eight weeks, as that offense is clicking like they
did last year, and the defense has a physical edge that they lacked last season.
They’ve assembled one of the best rosters possible in the modern NFL. There aren’t
any excuses for Denver (and
Manning) this year. And if he can’t get it done this season, with this roster?
Watch out, because he’s going to get excoriated by the media. But if they do
win this year, then the media will celebrate him like he’s Michael Jordan, and
(almost) everything will be forgotten.
Now, quickly onto my NFL picks. I’ll offer a few thoughts
where necessary. As always, the victor is in CAPS.
Bucs at BROWNS
Jags at BENGALS
CARDINALS at Cowboys
EAGLES at Texans
Jets at CHIEFS
CHARGERS at Dolphins
This will be a bounce back game for the Chargers, who are
coming off back-to-back division losses. Miami ,
who sits at 4-3, has looked pretty impressive over the last few weeks, but they've also had the sixth easiest schedule in the NFL this season. San
Diego has been so banged up this year, but they’ll get
Donald Brown back at running back this week, which should help a little bit.
Plus, I just have a feeling we’re going to get a huge Phil Rivers game on
Sunday. He was my MVP after Week 6, but he’s struggled the last two games (he completed less than 55% of his passes against the Chiefs,
and he threw two huge picks against Denver ).
San Diego will get back on track
this week.
Redskins at VIKINGS
Rams at 49ERS
Raiders at SEAHAWKS
BRONCOS at Patriots
Ravens at STEELERS
COLTS at Giants
Now I can’t ignore the college game, which has got some
massive games this week as well, including the first ever de facto playoff
elimination game, #3 Auburn at #4 Ole Miss. Let’s start there.
#3 Auburn at #4
OLE MISS
I can’t believe I’m siding with Rebels and Bo Wallace in a
big spot, particularly after that dumpster fire on Saturday night. I just don’t think Auburn ’s
that good of a team. Besides blowing out LSU (who was starting a Brandon
Harris, freshman in his first game on the road), where are their impressive
wins? Yeah, they won at Kansas State ,
but the Wildcats outplayed them the entire night. I’m not saying they’re
garbage, but there’s no way they should be in the playoff over Alabama .
Ole Miss will have the best defense in that game, they’re at home, and Bo,
besides the aforementioned colossal failure last week, has had a nice season (2,075
yards, 18 passing TDs). I’m crossing my fingers, closing my eyes, and rolling
the dice with the Rebels this week. It may come back to bite me.
#7 Tcu at #20 WEST VIRGINIA
On Monday, I picked West Virginia
to win the Big 12, because I think they have the easiest remaining schedule of
all the conference contenders (their two biggest games left are this week against
TCU, and on November 20th against K-State, both of which are at home). Of
course, TCU could easily come out and just move the ball at will on that
mediocre Mountaineers defense. I mean, they scored 82 points last week against
Texas Tech. Then again, the Horned Frogs have a worse defense than WVU, and
that, coupled with the Mountaineers being at home, in front of those rabid
fans, makes me think West Virginia will be able to squeak one out this week.
This game will go down as the nail in the coffin for Will
Muschamp. I think Georgia
is just going to absolutely put it on the Gators for 60 minutes, and win by at
least 4 touchdowns. Florida is
completely outmatched in this game, and they’re going to get destroyed. I still
can’t believe the Vols pulled a Derek Dooley and lost to this Gators’ team. Sheesh.
Regardless, Georgia
will win for the 4th straight time over Florida ,
the first time that’s happened since the early ‘80s.
I’m making this pick solely because I believe in Josh Dobbs
and the magic he showed last week. Do you realize that if the Vols go 2-2 over
their final 4 games (making them 5-7), Butch Jones will have a worse
record in his first two years than Derek Dooley? I believe that Butch, despite
the problems I’ve had with him, is far superior to Dooley as a coach, and
therefore, can’t have a worse two year run then Dooley did. But it’s in play. Fortunately
for the Vols, the Gamecocks have an awful defense, and I think the Vols will be able to move it down the field with relative ease. If they can outscore Alabama
over the last 3 quarters last Saturday, I think they should be able to do it all game to a
bad South Carolina team.
Stanford at #5 OREGON
If you’d asked me to pick this game a month ago, there’s no
doubt I’d pick the Cardinal, just because I thought they had that Oregon
match up figured out. But now, I’m going to have to side with the Ducks.
Stanford doesn’t have that same physical, pounding, running style on offense that
gave Oregon so much trouble the
last two years. Plus, they aren’t as great in the front seven on defense. All
that, coupled with the fact that this game is at Oregon ,
in Autzen Stadium, will be too much for Stanford to overcome. Oregon
will win.
Other college picks:
#24 DUKE at Pittsburgh
(Watch out for Duke in the Coastal Division! Could they really win that
division two years in a row? They’re in first place.)
#10 NOTRE DAME at Navy
#12 ARIZONA at
#22 Ucla (has there been a bigger phony than the Bruins this season? For all
this talk about them being national title contenders, they’ve been extremely
disappointing. They’ve only looked impressive in one game this year, against Arizona
State . Heck, they needed double
overtime last week to beat Colorado .
Colorado !)
#17 UTAH at
#14 Arizona State
(I’m a believer in the Utes! Watch out Oregon ! It's going to be tough at Utah in two weeks!)
Like always, enjoy football this weekend. You deserve it.
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