Is Peyton Manning really *THAT* good?

[PATRIOTSFANINPA]

I wonder what would happen if the Bears lost Forte. Can you go 0-50 in a 16 game season?

Hester is still a pretty good player as well

 

[PATSYLICIOUS]

No, It's the Colts front office fault for not getting a competent backup QB. If Matt Cassel were QB of the Colts they would be 3-3

QFT. With a top 15-20 QB the Colts would be 3-3 at worst. If the Colts didn't completely neglect the backup QB position and were prepared for this situation, they would be competing for the division right now. They'd have a solid shot to come very close to, if not match, the 10-6 record from last year.

So while Manning is very good, he's not as good as this 0-6 record makes him look

 

[VJCPatriot]

I realize those rankings are obviously going to result in a pretty bad team. But this team went from a 10-win team last year (and averaging over 12 wins a year over the past 9 seasons) to a horrible, horrible team. And, really, the only difference is that they don't have Peyton Manning.

So it makes me wonder: Is he really that good? It would seem like it, if he can make that big a difference.

The Colts were already starting to crumble before this season. In 2010, their offensive line woes were obvious. That's why they drafted a 1st round tackle for 2011. The Colts fixation on drafting skill position players early, rather than linemen has come back to bite them. They still don't have a great NT to anchor their run D, and their OL is porous. Their RB drafting has also been pretty poor. Addai and Brown don't look like stars even though they were both first round picks. Anthony Gonzales and Jerry Hughes are other examples of Colts 1st rounder who didn't work out.

Not to mention that Reggie Wayne is now 33 and of course Manning is out. The Colts tried to bring Kerry Collins out of retirement to lead them. Well that wasn't gonna work. And how much confidence does Curtis Painter inspire? Yeah.... It's a mess in Indy right now. Their best chance really is to end up with the #1 pick and draft Luck.

 

[Disco Volante]

Coming from someone who think Manning is the second greatest quarterback of our generation...

I can not think of a single team in the NFL that would have a winning record with Curtis Painter or Kerry Collins at quarterback.

Manning's importance is being grossly exaggerated due to how awful his replacements are.

 

[PatsSox363804]

If the Colts had groomed a backup correctly they would be at worst 3-3 right now they just failed to do so. They put everything on Manning, which sure he can handle it as could Brady, but it puts them in a spot where if Manning goes down theyre screwed. When Brady went down we had a good OC and a backup who had 4 years in the system. Really its just a failure of their front office, of course the hayseeds will spin it as a Manning > Brady argument.

 

[Lansdowne]

Hester is still a pretty good player as well

He's good, but not good enough to prevent the Bears from a horrible skid without Forte.

 

[LivinLovin&Breathin_Brady]

Sure he's good but I think he's overrated too.

The Colts, would likely be 3-3, only because the defenses of 3 of those teams really suck. The Steelers, Titans and Texans would've beaten them Manning or not.

The team is just getting up there in age and the defense just flat out suck, especially towards the end of the game. Looking at their remaining schedule, I expect the Colts to win at least 6 of those games. As bad as the AFC south is right now, the Colts could probably make the playoffs on a 6-10 record.

Tenn- They'll lose the 1st one, but I can't see them losing to them twice.
They'll beat Atlanta
Jacksonville - just plain garbage, they'll whoop them x2
Carolina - Cam Newton will just toss the game away as usual
Houston - Likely will be resting their starters, Colts win easily.

Painter seems to have issues with helping the team score in the 2nd half. I'm sure he just need time to get into the game.

 

[VJCPatriot]

Hester is still a pretty good player as well

Now that's a player I wouldn't mind the Pats trading for. electric return skills and could be an x-factor for the Pats. Would they do it for a 3rd?? Probably not but he would be a huge upgrade over Slater.

As bad as the AFC south is right now, the Colts could probably make the playoffs on a 6-10 record.

Tenn- They'll lose the 1st one, but I can't see them losing to them twice.
They'll beat Atlanta
Jacksonville - just plain garbage, they'll whoop them x2
Carolina - Cam Newton will just toss the game away as usual
Houston - Likely will be resting their starters, Colts win easily.

Painter seems to have issues with helping the team score in the 2nd half. I'm sure he just need time to get into the game.

Colts can't make the playoffs at 6-10 unless that record wins the division. 6-10 is definitely NOT good enough to win a wildcard.

I think either the Titans or the Texans are good enough to go at least 8-8 if not 9-7. This means one of these teams will take the division title. The worst team to make the playoffs is the 7-9 Seahawks. Colts are very unlikely to make the playoffs unless Curtis Painter suddenly turns into Peyton Manning 2.0 and the Colts win 8 of their next 10 games and even then its not guaranteed because of possible tiebreaker rules.

 

[jwmann2]

Is Peyton Manning good? Well, I sat behind the Colts bench yesterday at the Bengals game and let me tell you this. When he approaches the coordinators or players on the sideline in between plays, he has their full attention. They shut up and they listen to what he has to say. Not too many players have that kind of impact on the sidelines.
The little plays yesterday that didn't happen....would have happened if Peyton was in the game.

 

[jcdavey]

not vs my chargers he isn't

 

[tests]

sure manning is "that good"... but i get this vibe with manning that he is a regular season superstar, but a choke artist in the playoffs (Kind of like lebron, but to a more severe degree).

 

[Bella*chick]

Is Peyton Manning good? Well, I sat behind the Colts bench yesterday at the Bengals game and let me tell you this. When he approaches the coordinators or players on the sideline in between plays, he has their full attention. They shut up and they listen to what he has to say. Not too many players have that kind of impact on the sidelines.
The little plays yesterday that didn't happen....would have happened if Peyton was in the game.

I mean, that's nice and all, but part of the problem. The entire organization is so dependent on one guy that they can't put one foot in front of the other without his approval? They better hope that his post football dream is to coach the Colts because he can't play football forever(as they seem to be just learning now).

 

[kudzif]

It has been amazing for me to watch the Colts' implosion this year. Look at their past 9 seasons:

10-6
12-4
12-4
14-2
12-4
13-3
12-4
14-2
10-6

Now this year, they're 0-6, and have looked very bad in the process. Their scores:

at Hou: L, 34-7
vs Cle: L, 27-19
vs Pit: L, 23-20
at TB: L, 24-17
vs KC: L, 28-24
at Cin: L, 27-17

Average score: Opp: 27.2, Ind 17.3

That's a -10 points per game. Their offense is ranked #28 in points, and #31 in yards. Their defense is ranked #28 in points allowed and #26 in yards allowed.

I realize those rankings are obviously going to result in a pretty bad team. But this team went from a 10-win team last year (and averaging over 12 wins a year over the past 9 seasons) to a horrible, horrible team. And, really, the only difference is that they don't have Peyton Manning.

So it makes me wonder: Is he really that good? It would seem like it, if he can make that big a difference.

The reasons for the collapse are ;

1. Caldwell is no Dungy. What is happening this year would not have happened under Dungy.

2. This year's colts team was their worst team in a long time, even with peyton they would have been scrambling until the end to even make the playoffs.

 

[kudzif]

Also the way the team was constructed relies on superior qb play or the team suffers because it was built to play with a lead. Its like last years patriots team imagine that defence with painter or kerry collins as our qb , how many games do you think we would have one.Matt Cassel and the team were succesful because the overall team was solid.

 

[jeffbiologist]

Not sure why people havent said that the colts D is built to play WITH A LEAD. Without a lead they are porous and one dimensional. Manning is that good but the team was built around him and wont work with someone half as good. They cant win close games, their run defense is about the smallest around.
This isnt the NBA, tanking games isnt done because even drafting isnt foolproof at #1....look at recent history. Drafting first NOW is a bit more advantagous because some team will mortgage their whole draft for him.......and only then can the colts truely rebuild for life without Manning.