Peyton Manning Gets No Respect

Dec 14, 2014; San Diego, CA, USA; Denver Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning (18) throws a pass during the fourth quarter as he is pressured by San Diego Chargers outside linebacker Melvin Ingram (54) at Qualcomm Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Robert Hanashiro-USA TODAY Sports

The problem is not Peyton Manning. Far from it.

The problem is the people who watch him. The problem is the image they have of him and the expectation of what he should look and play like.

When you’re a quarterback who holds every record for the position, that’s understandable. When you have played a certain way for the majority of your career, people can’t accept change.

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Change is one of the most difficult aspects in life for people to accept. They fight it. They don’t want it.

When you look at the record-breaking year Manning had last year with over 50 touchdowns and 5,000 yards for the record-breaking Denver Broncos offense that scored over 600 points, that’s how it should look every game. Manning should throw for over 400 yards and five touchdowns while leading the offense to over 50 points. If that doesn’t happen, oh boy, he’s not right. He’s in a funk. He’s washed up. He’s injured. The Broncos don’t stand a chance.

When Denver (11-3) wins ugly like they have the last three games, this is not what some fans want or expect.

The last four games, the Broncos have played four of the better defenses in the NFL, all who are pretty good against the pass. They don’t have a healthy Julius Thomas. They have reconfigured their offensive line and now have an injured Ryan Clady. They have changed their philosophy. Will it look perfect?

Despite all of that, Denver has won four-straight games. Over that stretch they have the best running game in the NFL. In three of those games the defense has held opponents to 16, 17 and 10 points in dominating performances.

Oh, and Manning still has thrown for over 4,000 yards for an NFL-record 14th time and is one touchdown behind the league leader Andrew Luck.

For the Broncos to win in the playoffs and hoist their third Lombardi Trophy, how they have played the last four games is how they will do it.

Dec 14, 2014; San Diego, CA, USA; Denver Broncos cornerback Aqib Talib (21) intercepts a pass intend for San Diego Chargers wide receiver Malcom Floyd (80) during the fourth quarter at Qualcomm Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Robert Hanashiro-USA TODAY Sports

I tried to give Broncos Country some perspective with a comparison to the Denver teams that won back-to-back Super Bowls. Prior to those years, John Elway had carried them to success. Those two years were the first time in Elway’s career he didn’t have to do it by himself. He finally had a team around him that could run the ball, dominate on defense and make plays on special teams. The passing game was a complementary tool.

After talking about it since the Super Bowl, it took the embarrassment in St. Louis to force Denver to get balance on offense. The Broncos finally realized they couldn’t achieve their goal the way they were playing and with the system they were using.

Of course, even with the flu, when he shouldn’t have played, Manning still went 14-for-20 for 233 yards and one touchdown. He had five completions of over 20 yards and a rating of 125.6. He didn’t throw an interception.