Monday, February 8, 2010

Peyton Manning Lost a Super Bowl ... So He Must Really Suck


Across the internet, talk shows and sportscasts last night and into the morning today, there is the chatter about Peyton Manning getting knocked down a peg or two. Lose a Super Bowl and I guess you suck.

I disagree.

Tom Brady lost a Super Bowl. So did Dan Marino and Brett Favre. Kurt Warner and Roger Staubach lost two. John Elway and Fran Tarkenton lost three Super Bowls. Jim Kelly lost four. They all are or will be in the Hall of Fame.

In Super Bowl XXIV, Elway completed just 10 of 26 passes for 108 yards, no TDs and two interceptions. That came two years after Elway threw three interceptions in Super Bowl XXII against the Redskins (he was just 14-of-38 on that day). Several years later, Elway leads the Broncos to back-to-back Super Bowls and he's regarded as one of the best ever.

A Super Bowl loss does take Manning out of the conversation of quarterbacks who started multiple Super Bowls and never lost. Joe Montana, Terry Bradshaw, Troy Aikman, Bart Starr, Ben Roethlisberger and Jim Plunkett all did that. Quite an impressive list, but not being on it doesn't make you a subpar star.

Manning completed 31-of-45 passes for 333 yards, a TD and an interception. In the Super Bowl he was the MVP of, he completed 25-of-38 passes for 247 yards, a TD and an interception. In one game, he's the MVP. In the other, he's not that great.

Manning's book is still be written so there could be another Super Bowl appearance or two in his future. He may never win another one. That's okay. He's still one of the greatest.

1 comment:

astalker said...

I don't think people are saying he isn't great -- just not the greatest as he was being called before the Super Bowl.