Peyton Manning

[Compassionate_Conservative]

Peyton Williams Manning (born March 24, 1976 in New Orleans, Louisiana) is an American football quarterback for the Indianapolis Colts NFL franchise. He is the son of former New Orleans Saints quarterback Archie Manning and Olivia Manning. He is the older brother of current New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning and the younger brother of former Ole Miss receiver Cooper Manning, whose college career was cut short by spinal stenosis. Peyton played high school football in New Orleans, for Louisiana's Isidore Newman School, college football for the University of Tennessee and was selected by the Indianapolis Colts as the first overall pick in the 1998 NFL Draft. Manning married his college girlfriend, Ashley Thompson, on March 17, 2001.

Manning holds several NFL passing records, including: touchdown passes in a single season (49 in 2004), most consecutive seasons with over 4,000 yards passing (6 from 1999 through 2004), and most seasons with 4,000 or more yards passing in a career . His career 94.4 passing rating in the NFL ranks first among active QB's with at least 1,500 passing attempts, and second all-time to Steve Young's 96.8. In nine NFL seasons, Manning has thrown for 275 touchdowns in his career (ranking him seventh all-time), and has thrown for a total of 37,586 yards in his career (ranking him thirteenth all-time).

High school career

At Isidore Newman High School in New Orleans, Manning started three consecutive seasons at quarterback (#14) for Newman's head football coaches Tony Reginelli and Keefe Hecker , throwing for 7,207 yards and 92 touchdowns and leading his team to a 34-5 record. He was the 93-94 Gatorade Player of the Year for the state of Louisiana. Documenting many of Peyton's games throughout the 1991-1994 seasons was local photographer and Newman teacher Tim Garrett.

One of Peyton's receivers during his sophomore season, his first starting at QB, was his older brother, Cooper (#18), then a senior. Cooper was recruited heavily and went to Ole Miss, their father's alma mater, but was diagnosed with spinal stenosis before his freshman year which ended his football career.

College career

Because of his father's legacy at Ole Miss, Manning stunned many when he chose to attend and play for the University of Tennessee. He became Tennessee's all-time leading passer with 11,201 yards, 863 completions and 89 touchdowns, while compiling a 39-6 record as a starter, setting an SEC record for career wins (although Georgia's David Greene would set a new record of 42 wins in 2005). In his college career, he threw only 33 interceptions in 1,381 attempts, an NCAA record for best all-time interception percentage. He was 3-1 in his four bowl appearances. He completed his degree in three years, a BA in speech communication with a 3.61 GPA and Phi Beta Kappa honors, and was projected to be the top overall pick in the NFL Draft but returned to Tennessee for his senior year. In his senior season, Manning threw for 3,819 yards and 36 touchdowns, lead the Vols to the SEC title and finished second in 1997 Heisman Trophy voting to the University of Michigan's Charles Woodson. Manning received the 1997 James E. Sullivan Award as the top amateur athlete in the United States. In 2005, Tennessee retired Manning's number (#16), making him only the 3rd Tennessee player to have his number retired while still living. One of the streets leading to Neyland Stadium has been re-named Peyton Manning Pass.

College awards

1997 Davey O'Brien Award - Awarded to the Nation's Top Senior Quarterback

1997 Johnny Unitas Award - Awarded to the Nation's Top Quarterback

1997 Maxwell Award - Nation's Top Player

1997 College Football All-America Team

1997 James E. Sullivan Award - Awarded by the Amateur Athletic Union to the outstanding amateur athlete in the United States

1997 Today's Top VIII Award - honors eight outstanding senior student-athletes

1997 SEC Championship MVP

1997 Capital One Bowl Overall MVP

Scandal

In 1996, while still quarterback at the University of Tennessee, Manning allegedly "dropped his pants in front of (female assistant athletic trainer) Jamie Ann Naughright". TheSmokingGun.com reports this incident as being a "mooning" gone awry and not sexual in nature. In 2003, The University of Tennessee chose to settle the lawsuit with Naughright (then named Jamie Whited) for $300,000. When Peyton signed with the Indianapolis Colts, he donated $300,000 to the Tennessee athletic department to cover this cost.

Professional career

Manning was selected first overall in the 1998 draft by the Indianapolis Coltsand has started every game in his NFL career, missing only one snap due to injury despite sustaining injuries as serious as a broken jaw inflicted by defensive end Lorenzo Bromell . He was the NFL co-MVP in 2003,sharing the honor with then Tennessee Titans quarterback Steve McNair. In 2004, Manning became the highest-paid player in NFL history at the time, signing a $99.2m contract for seven years with a $34.5m signing bonus, an average of $14.17m annually. Under the contract, Manning is also eligible to earn an extra $19m in incentives.

In scouting reports, Manning is known as a "pure" pocket passer rather than a "scrambler." Manning is well-known for his frantic hand gestures and shouting before the play while calling out audibles, often stretching play preparation near the end of the play clock but rarely receiving "delay of game" penalties.

1998 season

Peyton Manning was the first draft pick of the 1998 NFL Draft, selected by Indianapolis, and started immediately for the team. Manning passed for 3,739 with 26 touchdowns and 28 interceptions. He set five different NFL rookie records, including most touchdown passes in a season and was named to the NFL All-Rookie First Team. The Colts finished 3-13.

1999 season

Prior to the beginning of the season, the Colts selected running back Edgerrin James during the NFL draft. Manning and James lead the team to a 13-3 record, an AFC East championship, and the play-offs. Manning passed for over 4,000 yards and 26 touchdown passes and the team earned a first round bye as the AFC's second seed, behind Jacksonville. In the playoffs the Colts fell 19-16 to the Super Bowl bound Tennessee Titans. Manning completed 19 of 43 passes with no touchdowns.

2003 season

Manning threw for 4,267 yards and 29 touchdowns during the regular season, leading his team to a 12-4 record despite having a defense that ranked 20th in the NFL in points allowed (336). In the wildcard playoff round Manning and the Colts defeated the Denver Broncos 41-10, Manning's first playoff win after first round losses in the 3 previous seasons. He completed 22 of 26 passes for 377 yards and 5 touchdowns in the game, earning him a perfect 158.3 Passer Rating. In the divisional playoffs, Manning led the Colts to a 38 - 31 win over the Kansas City Chiefs in the first puntless game in NFL playoff history,throwing for 304 yards and 3 touchdowns, and earning a 138.8 passer rating. In the AFC title game Manning was shut down by the New England Patriots defense and posted the third lowest passer rating of his career at 35.5. The Patriots defense intercepted Manning four times (three of them by Ty Law) as the Colts lost the game 24 - 14.

2004 season

In 2004, Manning had one of the greatest regular seasons in NFL history, putting up 4,557 yards, a 121.1 quarterback rating, and 49 touchdowns, surpassing the record for TD passes in a season (48) held by Miami Dolphins quarterback Dan Marino for two decades. His quarterback rating in 2004 also surpassed the previous single-season mark of 112.8 set by Hall of Fame San Francisco 49ers quarterback Steve Young. In addition to his individual achievements, Manning also led the Colts to a 12-4 record and their second consecutive AFC South division title. As a result, he was a near-unanimous selection for the 2004 NFL MVP in drawing 49 of 50 votes (Michael Vick received one vote), was named NFL Offensive Player of the Year respectively. However, the Colts' 2004 season ended in Foxborough for a second straight year with a 20 - 3 loss in the AFC Divisional Playoff game against New England when Manning played his worst game of the year, recording a season-low passer rating of 69.3 and posting a season-low 3 points of offense. It was Manning's seventh consecutive loss to the Patriots in Foxborough, MA. The Colts' three points were their lowest single game point total since their opening game of the 2003 season.

2005 season

AFC quarterback Peyton Manning, during the 2006 Pro Bowl in HawaiiIn 2005 the Colts had a greatly improved defense over that of recent years. In week 15, the Colts had a perfect 13-0 record, and had secured the AFC South, home field advantage throughout the playoffs, and a first round bye. Nevertheless, Tony Dungy made the decision to play all of his regular starters against the Chargers in the hopes of keeping his team sharp for the playoffs. However, the Colts played a sub-par game against the Chargers and fell short of the win; the score was 26-17.Manning finished the season with 3,747 passing yards, the first time he had thrown for under 4,000 yards since his rookie season of 1998, largely due to the fact that Manning sat out much of the final two games with the top AFC seed clinched.

On January 15, 2006, the Pittsburgh Steelers visited the RCA Dome for the second AFC divisional playoff game of the 2005 season. The Steelers shocked most fans and analysts by gaining a 14-3 lead by halftime. In the 4th quarter the Colts were almost able to pull off an improbable comeback, after a series of unlikely (and controversial) events. With only a few minutes left in the game, Manning threw what looked to be the game-ending interception to Troy Polamalu, but the interception was overturned (a call the NFL later admitted was incorrect). The Colts went on to score, and were able to get the ball back down three points near the end of the game. On 4th down Manning was sacked near his own goal line, and the game seemed to be over as the Steelers were one yard from a touchdown. On the play the ball was handed off to Bettis who fumbled the ball. It was picked up by Colts defender Nick Harper who appeared to have a clear path down the sideline for what might have been the game-winning score. However, he inexplicably cut to the center of the field where Steelers' quarterback Ben Roethlisberger was running backwards hoping to get into position to tackle. He managed to dive in front of Harper and tackle him by the leg, saving a touchdown. The Colts drove down the field from their own 42 yard line to the Steelers 27 yard line, before Mike Vanderjagt missed a field goal as time ran out. (It was the first time a 6th seeded team would eventually go on to win the Super Bowl when the Steelers won Super Bowl XL.)

Peyton came in second in voting for the 2005 MVP award to Shaun Alexander (19 to 13, out of 50 voters), ending his streak at two years. He was named the 2005 winner of the Walter Payton Man of the Year Award. He was also nominated for the 2005 FedEx Air Player of the Year Award, along with Tom Brady and Carson Palmer, the winner of the award. The two runners up were both also quarterbacks for the Pro Bowl that year.

2006 season

The Colts started 9-0 but finished the season with a 12-4 record and got the third seed in the playoffs. Manning had a good season, throwing for 31 touchdowns, 4397 yards, and leading the NFL with a 101.0 Quarterback rating. In addition, by throwing 31 TD passes and only 9 interceptions he became the second quarterback in league history (the other being Donovan McNabb) to throw 30 touchdowns and fewer than 10 interceptions in a single season.

Manning's Colts defeated the Kansas City Chiefs in the first round of the playoffs on January 6 by the score of 23-8. On Saturday, January 13, 2007, the Colts won their Divisional Playoff game against the favored Baltimore Ravens by the score of 15-6, in which all of the Colts' points were scored by Adam Vinatieri, whose 5 field goals tied an NFL record. The Colts played the New England Patriots on Sunday, January 21, 2007 for the AFC Championship. The Colts (#3 seed) had home field advantage because they beat the Patriots during the regular season (tiebreaker rule). The Colts trailed 21-3 before coming back to defeat the Patriots for the AFC title by a score of 38-34, after Manning led a 7-play, 80-yard touchdown drive to take the lead with 1:00 left in the game. The 18-point comeback was the largest deficit ever overcome in a conference championship (NFL record).

On February 4, Manning led the Colts to a 29-17 victory over the Chicago Bears in Super Bowl XLI (247 passing yards on 25 of 38 passes; 1 TD pass and 1 INT) and was voted the Super Bowl MVP. According to NewsMax.com Manning, a seven-time All-Pro quarterback slammed by his critics for failing to win when it matters, exorcised his big-game demons with the win. "In years' past when our team's come up short, it's been disappointing," he told reporters. "Somehow we found a way to have learned from some of those losses and we've been a better team because of it." Ironically, Manning won his first championship during a year in which he was having arguably his worst statistical post-season throwing for 7 interceptions, and finding the end zone only 3 times.

Advertising

“ That guy's pretty good. If you like...six-five, 230-pound quarterbacks. Laser...rocket arm. ”

—Peyton Manning, in disguise, referring to himself in an advertisement for Sprint

“ D-Caf! (thump, thump) D-Caf! (thump, thump) ”

—Peyton Manning, acting like a zealous sports fan toward normal folks in a spot for Mastercard

“ Cut that meat! Cut that meat! ”

—Peyton Manning, acting like a zealous sports fan toward normal folks in a spot for Mastercard

Peyton Manning shouting "Cut that meat!" repeadilly towards a deli slicer like an overzealous sports fan in a Mastercard commercial.Manning has become the NFL's most marketable player , appearing in several television and printed advertisements for some of the NFL's biggest sponsors. Manning is recognized as a pitchman for the following companies: Sprint, Sony, MasterCard, Gatorade, DirecTV, H.H. Gregg, and the American Red Cross. Manning also was the spokesman for Xbox's NFL Fever 2002, 2003 and 2004, and was featured on the cover of all three games.

An ESPN This is SportsCenter from 2006 features the entire Manning family: Peyton, brothers Eli and Cooper, and parents Archie and Olivia. In it, Peyton and Eli (who are the younger two brothers) are horseplaying behind everybody else as the Manning family is given a tour of the SportsCenter studio.

His DirecTV commercial in 2005, where during a snap he directly addressed the viewer, spawned a whole series of DirecTV commercials where the likes of William Shatner, Bill Paxton, Jessica Simpson and Christopher Lloyd addressed the viewer during key scenes from their various motion pictures.

Peyton also appears in advertisements for St. Mary's Medical Center in Knoxville, Tennessee (where he attended college and played college football). He has appeared in several television commercials for the hospital.

Source:Wikipedia

[sweetandlow]

2007 ESPY Awards - Red Carpet

July 11, 2007 - Kodak Theatre

Hollywood, California United States

Peyton and my fave, Shaq

[spades24]

He is the love of my life

[spades24]

Peyton's priceless pep talks!