Eli: Peyton’s Legacy “Shouldn’t be Affected by One Game”

Eli Manning has been two times a groom and on Super Bowl Sunday, he’ll be three times a groomsman.

He has hoisted the Lombardi trophy twice in his two Super Bowl appearances, and watched Peyton win a close game, and much more recently, get mercilessly blown out. But with his big brother’s final game likely on the horizon, Eli says Peyton’s legacy has already been decided.

“Honestly, I think there’s too much placed on rings and Super Bowl championships just because it’s not one player. The quarterback is not the sole reason that you win a championship, it’s the team,” he explained. “I hope [Peyton] can win but his impact has already been made. His legacy…shouldn’t be affected by this one game.”

Manning makes a couple of interesting points, both generally and in specific relation to his brother’s career. There is an unfair tendency to attach Super Bowl wins exclusively to quarterbacks and no one else.

When was the last time you heard a running back referred to as a “multi-time champion?” How about middle linebackers? They are the “quarterbacks of the defense,” after all. There’s no denying that QB is the most important position on the field, but the implication that they have total control over who wins and loses – in a sport as specialized as football – is ludicrous.

As for Peyton’s legacy not being tarnished by another loss, Eli makes a lot of sense. The circumstances would be entirely different if, like in the lead up to Super Bowl XLVIII, Peyton was still at the top of his game and was the conduit through which the entire offense operated.

A couple of short seasons later, age and injuries have caught up to The Sheriff. He has been reduced to the borderline-insulting title of “game manager,” forced to lean on an elite defense and stout running game to carry him to a second ring.

Manning’s greatest challenge will be to end the playoffs without throwing a single interception against Carolina’s opportunistic secondary; a tall order given how woeful he was at protecting the ball in the regular season.

It’s hard to picture people getting on Manning’s case too much if the Broncos come away with yet another Super Bowl loss. It’ll take more than a poor game from Peyton to force another blowout. Cam Newton’s dual-threat skillset and his O-line’s ability to repel wave after wave of Denver pass rushers will play a much bigger role in deciding this one.