Is Peyton Manning the greatest athlete to ever play in the Mile High City?
There’s definitely a case to be made for that. No shade to John Elway, Floyd Little, Todd Helton, Nikola Jokic, Joe Sakic, and all the rest of the all-time Denver sports greats.
But after being discarded by his first team the Colts, Manning rose like a phoenix from the ashes of injury to lead the Denver Broncos to two Super Bowls and one win. And then “The Sheriff” rode off into the sunset, just like the “Duke of Denver,” Elway.
Peyton Manning named to ESPN’s Top 100 list of 21st Century Athletes
Nearly a quarter-century since the year 2000 and ESPN has compiled their list of the best athletes of the modern era.
And there’s Peyton Manning, the former Denver Broncos Hall of Fame quarterback and only-ever 5-time NFL MVP, on the list. He came in at No. 26 overall, the fourth-highest football player on the list.
Above Manning were Tom Brady (No. 5), Patrick Mahomes (No. 18), and Aaron Donald (No. 20).
Jeff Legwold wrote,
“He signed with the Broncos after a missed season in 2011, his fourth neck surgery and a bit of uncertainty about whether physically he could play at the level he wished. His four years in Denver answered those questions with four AFC West titles, two Super Bowl trips and a Super Bowl win.
His masterpiece might have been the 2013 season, when the Broncos broke the league’s scoring record with 606 points and Manning set records with 5,477 passing yards and 55 touchdowns, including seven in the season opener. The Broncos topped 40 points six times and 50 points three times. Current Dolphins associate head coach and former Broncos assistant Eric Studesville said: “I’ve never seen anything like Peyton and those guys that year. I don’t think anybody has. That was just an all-time great with the ball in his hands doing all-time great things at a level nobody else has been to.”
While the Broncos won Super Bowl 50, following the 2015 season, Legwold is right about 2013. That year was an absolute masterpiece for Peyton Manning, as well as his teammates.
Denver set a ton of offensive records in 2013, many of which remain unbroken. That includes the 606 total points, as well as five players with 10-plus touchdowns.
You can read all about that season in Chasing Lombardi: The Elway-Manning Era, a book dedicated to the 2013 season. (Reach out to Rich Kurtzman to buy a signed copy!)
Manning was the only Denver Broncos player to make the list, and Nikola Jokic was the only other Denver-based player to hit the list. He came in just two spots behind Manning at No. 28 overall.
