On Sunday, Peyton Manning – statistically at least – established himself as the greatest NFL quarterback in history. Entering the afternoon’s game against the Kansas City Chiefs he was just three yards short of breaking Brett Favre’s record for career passing yards.
He passed that mark with a four-yard pass to Ronnie Hillman after his first throw of the afternoon was intercepted. The game was briefly stopped as Manning acknowledged his achievement before he went back to business. But his victory tour would not last for long – he was benched for Brock Osweiler after another poor performance, in which he threw for four interceptions and completed just 25% of his passes for 35 yards.
The new mark of 71,871 yards (and counting) goes alongside his NFL passing records for, among others, career touchdowns, touchdowns in a season and yards in a season. Manning has also been named the league’s MVP five times, has made 13 Pro Bowls and is a lock for the Hall of Fame.
The one mark that will rankle Manning when he retires is his sole Super Bowl victory (although the Broncos are a contender this year). That pales into comparison with another quarterback with a claim to be the best of the best, Tom Brady, who has four Super Bowl wins to his name.
Manning’s record comes in a poor season by his high standards. Although the Broncos top their division they have been winning despite Manning’s efforts. Coming into Sunday, Manning had nine touchdowns to 13 interceptions. His passer rating of 75.6 was the worst since his debut season in 1998 and the second worst of any starting quarterback in the league.
But any current struggles meant little on an afternoon when Manning confirmed once again that he fully deserves his place among the greats.
