I didn't remember specifically but who cares? at first you said he wouldn't go to an NFC team b/c of his brother yet he was in talks w/ SF. Then you said Elway had to convince him- which is it? He knew exactly what he was getting himself into, he wasn't talked into anything by Elway. why on earth would a smart player put the rest of his career into the hands of John Elway who had done nothing as an exec? was peyton impressed by John's Arena league work?
Go look into the timeline of events that occurred during those weeks and you will understand why he got involved with San Francisco and you will understand Elways impact. If you dont think Elway didnt have an impact, you are very VERY mistaken. But again, go do research and then maybe we can talk about it.
I never said he didn't have any impact but to pretend like Denver had no shot then Elway convinced him isn't being fair. There were rumors all over the place during that time, that doesn't make them true. Peyton manning was not going to a team he didn't know he could win with. he may not be a good postseason QB but he is a damn smart one.
but which is it? would he not play for an NFC team b/c of his brother? or did a boyhood idol convince him to go to a team w/ no talent instead of choosing that NFC team?
Wait so Garcon isn't good? Garcon is a very good receiver. Sure, he became a star under Peyton but that doesn't mean he is a good receiver only because Peyton. As for Collie, he had under 700 yards in his best year and always had Garcon/Wayne/etc taking pressure off him. LOL @ him being a star. BTW nobody is denying that Peyton makes everyone around him look better. But that is beside the point. Demaryius was considered a bust by nobody. And even if he was, who cares. Players develop at different rates. He was putting up decent numbers in his 2nd year with one of the worst QBs in football throwing him the ball. Again, just because Peyton made him better doesn't mean he is not a stud. Watch him play and tell me other teams aren't dying to have him. Kerry Collins was garbage by the time he took over the Colts. A better comparison would be to look at what Wayne did after Luck, another good QB, took over. Stop trying to marginalize players who clearly have talent. This isn't even close to a debatable topic. Peyton has tons of weapons at his disposal and nobody who knows football would try to say otherwise.
Its a combination of both, when Peyton hit free agency the first thing he did was say NO to the Cardinals, Redskins, Seahawks, (and the rest of the NFC teams). This was on the first day. A couple days later reports came out that he wasnt going to go the Jets or Dolphins either. Peyton went and talked to the Dolphins and immediately said no. Then for about a week he went and visited the Titans and Broncos and those were considered the final 2 choices. He viewed Tennessee as an option because he played college in Tennessee and had a history there. Prior to making his decision, a report came out that the 49ers had contacted him and worked him out. The only reason he gave the 49ers attention was because they were coming off an NFC championship. He was clearly tempted to go to the Niners but the whole NFC thing still affected his decision. In the end he chose the Broncos over the Titans which were the only options. Its clear he never wanted anything to do with the NFC, those NFC teams like the Seahawks, Cardinals, and Redskins were all told no the day after he was released by the Colts. He gave attention to the Dolphins, Titans, and Broncos the days/weeks after. The 49ers got involved late and clearly caught Mannings interests but he did not want to go to the NFC and thats what nearly everyone was reporting at the time. Manning spent nearly twice as long with the Titans than he did the Broncos which lead many to believe it was getting serious. Heres part of an article from Sports Illustrated: http://nfl.si.com/2012/03/19/peyton-manning-picks-the-broncos/
I get all that and I said from the start if things were relatively equal he'd picked the AFC team but how can you say Elway convinced him and he wouldn't go to an NFC team? it says in your link ten was the favorite b/c of money so things weren't equal, when Den got in that ballpark things became equal. was SF ever close as far as money? I am sure all these things played a role it just wasn't as clear cut as "he won't play for an NFC team" or "Elway convinced him". Money and talent convinced him.
He wouldnt even talk to the Redskins, Cardinals or Seahawks. The 49ers were the only NFC team he talked to and they came in VERY late. They were also coming off the championship game and had to have gauged his interest. The only teams he talked to other than the 49ers were all AFC teams including the Dolphins who were coming off a bad season. After talking to the Phins he immediately ruled them out. The 49ers were very secretive in their pursuit of Peyton, when the report came out they had met with Peyton, it was discoved that they had worked him out a couple days before anyone even knew about it. I remember reading "breaking news: Peyton worked out with 49ers.....2 days ago" or something along those lines.
Just to switch the convo on, one thing that people will like is that championship weekend features four best teams in the NFL. No Cinderella like last couple of years
If I recall correctly he didn't even go to visit the Phins, we were so desperate we flew out to see him and out of not wanting to look like a dick he gave us a brief meeting. It was complete media speculation that he ever wanted to sign with us.
Seattle was coming off a 7-9 season, they had Pete Carroll who had been fired by 2 other teams, they had RB and that was about it on O. No one wants to go to DC unless they are desperate for money. but again if he had no interest in going to an NFC team b/c of his brother why would he even entertain SF? no matter when they got involved.
The record of Seattle shouldnt have mattered according to you, if the Broncos went 3-13 with Orton you think Peyton still views that team the same way? No. Seattle had the better team but they werent in the playoffs which AGAIN goes back to the original point that if Tebow did not turn the Broncos around, Manning does not land there. The Chiefs were another team that contacted Manning and he never talked to them despite prolly having just as much talent as Denver. The difference between KC and Denver that season was Denver got into the playoffs week 17 while KC got knocked out of the playoffs week 17. Im telling you man, if Tebow didnt turn Denver around it wouldnt have looked as pretty of a destination.
but did Seattle have elite offensive talent besides the RB? did they have a SB coach? Remember the old views on Pete Carroll not the current views. KC has some talent, they don't have the receivers Den has and didn't have the potential Den's receivers had in 2011. a team that could win a playoff game w/ Tm Tebow is a pretty special team talent wise to overcome that.
Im done adressing this, why dont you go take a look at what Seattle and you tell me: -Sidney Rice -Doug Baldwin -Ben Obamanu -Golden Tate -Kris Durham -Marshawn Lynch Peyton would have put together an offensive machine with those guys to, he did not want to go to the NFC. Chiefs had: -Jamal Charles -Jackie Battle -Dexter Mcluster -Dwayne Bowe -Steve Breaston -Jonathin Baldwin -Leonard Pope Both teams had TONS of offensive weapons, the difference though was the Broncos werent a 3-13 mess, they were a playoff team that made the final 8. When that Broncos team was 1-4 the perception of the entire franchise was that it was an absolute mess, Tebow turned the mentality of losing around and has ALOT to do with why Peyton is in Denver today. If Peyton wouldnt talk to a 7-9 team then what makes you think he would talk to a team that was heading for a 3-4 win season?
Neither anywhere near close to what he has now. Both have great RBs and a good WR, none have the elite talent he has now and having a great RB is almost useless b/c he throws so much. Lynch would not be getting nearly as many carries as he does now and Seattle wouldn't be as effective b/c of it. Seattle wasn't a mess, they were 7-9 and had won a playoff game the year before. why wouldn't he look at them w/ "all that talent"? b/c they were in the NFC? then why would he look at SF? KC had just won a div title in 2010, why wouldn't he look at them w/ "all that talent"? he was so impressed w/ an 8-8 team that won a weak division he had to be a Bronco? if they were 6-10 then Elway wouldn't have been able to "convince him"? if they were 6-10 he would have went to SF even though he didn't want to play in the NFC?
Welker and Julias Thomas werent even on the team when he made the decision, I am DONE talking about this. The guys I listed on Seattle were on the team when he made his decision. If this was based on talent then Peyton clearly misjudged it because Seattle has done just as much as the Broncos WITHOUT Peyton Manning. Seattle had a rookie QB and went just as far.
