Peyton Manning is one of the biggest names in the NFL and a household name even to viewers who don’t obsessively remember names, dates and stats. Manning earned his fame through hard work as he led his team the Indianapolis Colts to a Super Bowl championship at XLI and also scored an MVP title. He has also won eleven Pro Bowls, six AFC Player of the Year awards and is also the Colts all-time leader in total career wins, passing touchdowns and passing completions. Fox Sports and Sports Illustrated even named him the NFL player of the decade.
In addition to his quarterback performance, Manning has also appeared on TV commercials, hosted Saturday Night Live and guest-starred on The Simpsons. You would have thought Peyton Manning would have stayed with Indianapolis for his entire career (if not his entire life) but then something unexpected happened.
The disastrous year that was 2011. Actually, for most of 2011 things were going well, and Manning even signed a new contract for 90 million dollars to play five years as a Colts quarterback. However, in May 2011, he underwent neck surgery to alleviate longstanding neck pain and arm weakness. By September, he had to undergo another surgery: a level one cervical fusion procedure. This caused Manning to miss the entire season of 2011–a disastrous season for the Colts, one that ended with only two wins and fourteen losses.
Manning went from never missing an NFL game to missing an entire season of play–and the Colts responded in un-kind, by releasing him from the team on March 7 of this year. However, Manning is far from retired. In fact, he is itching to get back into the game, and has been visiting teams across the NFL. The latest team to receive a visit will be the Tennessee Titans this week. He has also visited Denver and Arizona in a short period of time, and has also expressed interest in Miami.
However, Tennessee is the only team of that lot that had a winning record last year. Might this be significant in Manning’s decision? What do you think? Where will Manning sign? Will he bring the team to greatness or did Indianapolis make the right call?
A few quality NFL teams have already advanced to the top of their league, though no one’s really turned in a dynamite performance as of yet. We do know that the Baltimore Ravens advanced and clinched the AFC North by defeating the suddenly chilled Cincinnati Bengals. The New England Patriots may be headed back to the spotlight, as they defeated the Buffalo Bills, which helped them clinch the division as well as the home field advantage.
In the AFC South, the Houston Texans graduated “top of the class”, though they have actually lost their last three games. Credit their league-best record of 10-6, which helped them coast to the end. Over in the AFC West, things are looking ghastly, as most teams are 8-8, and the Denver Broncos just barely clinched the division over the Chargers.
The New York Giants amassed the best record in the NFC East and enjoyed some impressive wins, but their 9-7 record isn’t much compared to NFC North leader the Green Bay Packers who are holding onto their near perfect 15-1 record. The NFC South is dominated by New Orleans, who has an impressive 13-3 record, and has clinched their division over the Falcons. Lastly, there is the NFC West, and it has been claimed by the San Francisco 49ers, with an equally impressive 13-3 record, besting Arizona, Seattle and St. Louis.
It’s also time to review coach casualties, which say a lot considering that the season isn’t even over yet! As of early January, the St. Louis Rams have fired head coach Steve Spagnuolo and General Manager Billy Devaney, while the Tampa Bay Buccaneers dumped head coach Raheem Morris. That’s a lot of coaches axed, considering other casualties like Tony Sparano of Miami, Todd Haley of Kansas City and Jack Del Rio of Jacksonville.
Ultimately it’s winning that decides your job stability. This has been a lackluster season and most teams have fallen short of expectations – except of course power teams like Green Bay, New Orleans, Baltimore and San Francisco. What do you think? Is this Super Bowl going to be a Green Bay party day or is there an upset in the making?
As it stands, Philadelphia Eagles‘ Michael Vick is leading the polls for NFL MVP. However, the Pats are playing at an elite status right now, and Tom Brady is still a contender. Who is your pick for NFL MVP – Michael Vick or Tom Brady…or someone else?
There has been a lot of discussion lately, with regards to who is the best defensive player in the NFL. Pittsburgh Steeler, Troy Polamalu, continues to come up in conversation. The week 14 pick 6 against the Cincinnati Bengals isn’t hurting his case… What are your thoughts?
In Cleveland, it is alleged that an 8 year old boy – who happens to be a New York Jets fan – was attacked by an adult (and most likely intoxicated) Cleveland Browns fan, after the Browns lost to the Jets. Do you see this type of behavior at games? Would you have intervened? What if it was your child? Or, do you assume a risk when taking a child to an NFL game? Share your thoughts!
Will Big Ben’s luck ever run out? This past weekend during NFL game against the Miami Dolphins, Ben comes out as the hero for the Steeler’s putting them ahead to win the game.
In the last few minutes of the second quarter of Sunday’s game, Roethlisberger called his number and attempted to scramble for a 2-yard touchdown. Here was the ruling on the play: after review, referee Gene Steratore stated that Roethlisberger fumbled the ball prior to crossing the goal line, but according to the head official – the evidence was inconclusive to which team recovered the ball and he rewarded the ball back to the Steelers.
Yes, that is right. Said to be one of the most beautiful woman on the planet, Marisa Miller is now teaming up with the NFL as an official spokesperson. “I’m so excited to have this incredible opportunity to partner with the NFL,” Miller says to a Hollywood reporter.
Most men have seen Marisa in the famous Sports Illustrated swimsuit edition and featured as a Victoria’s Secret model. Now they can see her on weekends in both print and commercial ads for the league. The first print campaign features Miller in vintage 49ers and Broncos gear to promote the overseas game.
“Going to the U.K. for this game is going to be a blast,” says Miller. “I’m looking forward to helping gain new fans and show them how incredible the game of American football is!” See more Marisa Miller photos – click here.
Week five, aside from injury, was somewhat uneventful. However, today, we have seen some very interesting developments in the NFL. Who says there are no trades during the regular season?
The Buffalo Bills traded running back Marshawn Lynch to the Seattle Seahawks for two undisclosed draft choices. Lynch was the Bills’ first round draft pick in 2007. It will be interesting to see what kind of impact Lynch has on the overall performance of the Seahawks.
Lynch is no stranger to trouble with the law, but reports cite that this move is one in which he’s extremely excited about, and the Seahawks are happy to have him.
Many know that Randy Moss has not felt “wanted or appreciated” by the New England Patriots. Brady got his contract extension, and Moss thought the Pats should have done the same for him. Today, it was announced that Moss would be returning to the Minnesota Vikings, in exchange for an undisclosed (yet reported 3rd round) draft pick. Brett Favre and the Minnesota Vikings have to be beaming right now.
The question remains now, with two prominent players being traded in week five, does that open the Pandora’s Box of more upcoming trades before the NFL’s October 19 deadline?
Do you see more trades on the horizon? Who will stay, and who will go?
There were some shockers and some big upsets in week two of the 2010 NFL season. Virtually every fan was, at some point, on the edge of their seats during Sunday’s games.
For fans, the overtime play between the Texans and the Redskins was stressful, to say the least. While the Redskins’ Donovan McNabb threw for 426 yards and a touchdown, the Texans’ Matt Schaub threw for a franchise record 497 yards. More interesting, though, is that this match-up was only the fifth time in NFL history featuring two 400+ yard passers. In the end, it was Neil Rackers’ 35-yard field goal with 3:24 left in overtime, that gave the Houston Texans the win.
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