Broncos: Manning to retire, ride off into sunset
It wouldn’t be Sunday without football, but now Peyton Manning will have to find a new way to spend his weekend.
The Denver Broncos announced Sunday that Quarterback Peyton Manning has officially decided to retire after playing 18 seasons in the NFL and winning two Super Bowl titles.
“When you look at everything Peyton has accomplished as a player and person, it’s easy to see how fortunate we’ve been to have him on our team,” said John Elway, Broncos Executive Vice President of Football Operations and General Manager. “Peyton was everything that we thought he was and even more—not only for the football team but in the community. I’m very thankful Peyton chose to play for the Denver Broncos, and I congratulate him on his Hall of Fame career.”
Manning will officially announce his retirement on Monday at a press conference. According to ESPN’s Jeff Legwold, the Sheriff called the Broncos on Saturday night to let them know he had decided to retire.
Manning set nearly every Broncos single-season passing record in his first year with the Broncos in 2012 to earn NFL Comeback Player of the Year honors and finish as runner-up for league MVP.
In 2013, he captained the highest-scoring offense in NFL history, setting NFL single-season marks for passing yards (5,477) and passing touchdowns (55) while leading the Broncos to the Super Bowl for the first time since 1998.
“It was a blessing to coach Peyton Manning. Nobody worked harder at the game and nobody prepared harder than Peyton. His preparation was the best I’ve ever seen with how he went about his business. There was nothing like his work habits. Each and every week, he did everything he could to get ready to play not only against the defense but even against the coordinator,” said Head Coach Gary Kubiak. “Being with him this season, going through what we went through and accomplishing what we accomplished—that was special. He and I battled together and along the way we talked about dreaming that it could end the way it ended. And I’ll be damned, it did.”
After all the back and forth, the “he-said-she-said” of the past week, it seems that Manning’s embrace with Bill Belichick after the AFC Championship Game was all the foreshadowing we needed.
“This might be my last rodeo. So it sure has been a pleasure,” Manning allegedly said to the Patriots’ head coach.
No matter where the Broncos go from here, it’s clear that in the four years Manning played in the blue and orange he created a culture and an expectation that will live on.
“Our team, our organization and our community are all better because of Peyton Manning,” Broncos President & CEO Joe Ellis said. “He raised the performance of those around him and raised the level of excellence here at the Broncos.”
