Don't Let Legacy Overshadow Greatness

What is it with us sports fans?

We don’t like to admit how great a player is until they retire. Great players seemingly become better, sometimes nearly immortal, once they step off the field for the final time. The further removed they are from their playing days the better we believe they were…even if only in our minds. For whatever reason, we just can’t enjoy greatness until greatness is gone.

 

Look no further than Peyton Manning and the endless discussion this week of how this Super Bowl is going to affect, maybe even define, his legacy. Never mind the amazing 16 year career he has strung together compiling video game numbers in real life football. It all boils down to this one game…or so the nauseating Super Bowl coverage would lead you to believe. Many talking heads seem to believe that with a win, Manning will finally be allowed into the discussion of the “Best Quarter Back of All-Time.” IF he wins. Should he lose, those same talking heads would lead you to believe that Manning is simply a good quarter back that couldn’t win the “Big One.”

 

No other position in sports has their legacy so closely tied to championships as an NFL quarterback. We conveniently look past the fact that a quarter backs is completely reliant on his line to protect him, his receivers to run the right routes and catch the ball, his defense to stop someone and his special teams to do their job - not blow the game. Apparently those aspects of the game don’t affect the Super Bowl, just the quarterback. And, until the quarterback hoist the Lombardi high into the confetti littered sky, he isn’t permitted in the conversation of best quarter back.

 

Win one Super Bowl and we will let your name enter the conversation. Win just one and those that hold the “Best Quarter Back Conversation” keys will hold it against you – because one title just isn’t enough. That’s where we are with Manning. Despite what our eyes (and common sense) told us, for years Manning wasn’t allowed to be in the “Best Quarter Back” discussion - until he won a Super Bowl. Then he won one, and the carrot moved. Sure, he won one, but so did Trent Dilfer, Brad Johnson, etc. Manning needed more than one to justify his place in history. Then he gets to another Super Bowl and loses, and now we question his ability to play in big games again. If he wins Sunday, he may be the best of all time. If he loses, he is overrated.

 

Stop it.

 

Our obsession with tying championships to how good a player is/was (especially quarter backs) is and always has been a ridiculous notion. If you don’t think Manning is the best quarter back ever, fine. It is subjective and to each their own. However, if you think a loss by the Broncos on Sunday should preclude Manning from that discussion, you are crazy. Straight crazy. No due respect on this one.

 

To his detractors, I would say: “Here are the facts. Don’t let them get in the way of your argument”:

When it comes to quarterbacks, we like to measure them on the following 7 categories: yards, touchdowns, passing rating, yards per game, completion percentage, game winning drives and 4^th quarter comebacks. As sports fans, we have determined these to be the categories that make a great quarter back. Well, when it comes to career leaders in these categories, Manning ranks 1^st or 2^nd in all but 2 categories. The two where he doesn’t rank in the top two? Yards per game and completion percentage. In those two categories, he ranks 3^rd and 4^th respectively.

How about from a single season standpoint? For single season, we add in QBR for an 8^th category. Manning again ranks 1^st or 2^nd in all but two categories (completion percentage and game winning drives). He ranks 12^th and 3^rd respectively. In other words, Manning is in the top 4 in 14 of the 15 categories, the leader in 7, and 2^nd in 4 others.

 

Still not convinced he belongs in the discussion if he loses Sunday? Take a look at how Manning stacks up to the all-time greats (Montana, Marino, Favre) and the greats of his era (Brady and Brees):

 

Career Leaders
	Leader			Manning (16 yrs)			Marino     (17 yrs)			Favre         (20 yrs)			Montana (15 yrs)			Brady        (14 yrs)			Brees        (13 yrs)
					Rank			Rank			Rank			Rank			Rank			Rank
Yards	Favre	71,838		64,964	2		61,361	3		71,838	1		40,551	13		49,149	7		51,081	5
TDs	Favre	508		491	2		420	3		508	1		273	11		359	5		363	4
Passer Rating	Rodgers	104.9		97.2	2		86.4	17		86.0	19		92.3	10		95.2	6		95.3	7
Ints	Favre	336		219	19		252	8		336	1		139	64		134	70		177	38
YPG	Stafford	286.2		270.7	3		253.6	8		237.9	13		211.2	34		254.7	7		274.6	2
Comp%	Pennington	66.0%		65.5%	4		59.4%	49		62.0%	18		63.2%	13		63.4%	11		65.9%	2
GW Drives	Manning / Marino	45		51	1		51	1		45	4		33	9		42	5		34	7
4th Qtr        C-Backs	Manning	30		40	1		36	2		30	6		31	4		31	4		23	15

 

Single Season Leaders
	Leader			Manning (16 yrs)			Marino     (17 yrs)			Favre         (20 yrs)			Montana (15 yrs)			Brady        (14 yrs)			Brees        (13 yrs)
					Rank			Rank			Rank			Rank			Rank			Rank
Yards	Manning	5477		5,477	1		5,084	6		4,413	48		3,944	134		5,235	3		5,476	2
TDs	Manning	55		55	1*		44	7		39	11		31	59		50	2		46	5
Passer Rating	Rodgers	122.5		121.1	2**		108.9	16		107.2	19		112.4	7		117.2	4		110.6	10
YPG	Manning / Brees	342.3		342.3	1		317.8	7		275.8	71		290.3	34		327.2	2		342.3	1
Comp%	Brees	71.2%		68.8%	12		64.2%	110		68.4%	18		70.2%	5		68.9%	10		71.2%	1
QBR	Manning	87.2%		87.2%	1***		n/a	n/a		67.0%	51		n/a	n/a		87.1%	2		84.0%	6
GW Drives	E. Manning	8		7 (2x)	3		6	13		4	81		5	29		7	3		6	13
4th Qtr C-backs	E. Manning / P. Manning	7		7	1		6	3		4	34		4	34		5	10		4	34

 

*Manning has 2 of the top 3 TD seasons

**Manning has 2 of the top 5 season ratings

***Manning has 6 of the top 11 single season QBRs (only Brees has more than 1 (2))

 

“So what? He still only has 1 Super Bowl” say his detractors. They are correct. And by their standards then, Terry Bradshaw is tied for the best quarterback ever with Joe Montana. The same Terry Bradshaw that has 212 career touchdowns, 201 career Interceptions, a career 51.9% completion percentage and 6 seasons of more Interceptions than touchdowns. Heck, even Montana’s numbers aren’t overwhelming. If not for his 4 Super Bowl rings, where would we put Montana? Of the 15 categories above, Montana ranks in the top 10 in 5 (career and single season passer rating, career GW drives and 4^th Quarter comebacks and single season completion %) and doesn’t have a single ranking above 4. Manning ranks 4 or better in 14 of the 15! This is not to knock Bradshaw and Montana, but let’s be fair about this, both played prior to free agency and the salary cap and Bradshaw’s teams won because of their defense and Montana’s teams were so loaded on all sides of the football it wasn’t even a fair fight. No salary cap era team could ever be constructed like Montana’s 49er teams were.

 

Come Sunday, win or lose, the talk of this game defining Manning’s legacy is absurd and buying into the talk will only preclude you from appreciating greatness before greatness walks away. Regardless of where you feel Manning ranks all-time, one thing is for sure, you won’t see many more like him and at 37 years old, you like won’t see much more of him either. Whether Manning wins or loses on Sunday, whether you want him to win or lose on Sunday, as a sports fan, allow yourself to enjoy watching one of the all-time greats. Far too often we wait until greatness has left before we appreciate what we were given the opportunity to witness. On Sunday, for once, appreciate it before it walks away. Chances are you won’t be sorry that you did.