Peyton Manning: "I love the game, so you don’t have to wonder if I’ll miss it"

One month ago exactly, Peyton Manning basked in the glow of a championship under a shower of gold confetti. Monday, back in Colorado from UCHealth Center, home of the Denver Broncos, he retired from the game of professional football after 18 seasons.

He owns numerous quarterback records, was the MVP of the NFL a record five times and won two Vince Lombardi Trophies, but the shower of praise he received Sunday evening and into Monday’s press conference was more telling than any record. Thanks, in large part, to him, he is leaving the NFL in far better shape than when he arrived.

“We all knew what he accomplished as a player, what he was capable of doing as a player,” Head Coach Gary Kubiak said Monday, turning to Manning. “But the thing that we all respected was what you are as a person and the way you represented the National Football league. There could not have been a greater example than yourself throughout the years.”

Manning’s on-field accomplishments are staggering and will help build his legend as his football playing days recede into the past but a man’s legacy is what stays and eludes time. Manning’s true legacy is how he handled himself and thus influenced those around him.

“We are going to hear about the numbers and the wins and the awards and all those things are amazing,” General Manager John Elway said. “But to me, the thing that is most amazing is how he went about it. Every athlete out there should look at Peyton Manning and what Peyton Manning is about, of course as a football player and as a man. Peyton Manning utilized every asset that God gave him to be the best football player he could be.”

There is no doubt that his work ethic, paired with his God-given talent, rubbed off on his teammates immediately. Sunday evening statements from around the football world came into the Broncos organization to express their thoughts on Manning’s career and retirement.

“You changed the game and made the players and coaches around you better. I’m so thankful I got a chance to share a huddle with you. As a fan, teammate and friend, it has been an honor,” former teammate and Hall of Fame running back Marshall Faulk said Sunday.

Manning’s ability to read defenses before the snap of the football and his laser accuracy to a litany of receivers over the years turned him into a winning machine. But it was his preparation before game day that seemed to separate him. Monday Manning addressed why he worked so hard saying, “no one could out-prepare me” but he also described the bigger reason behind his tireless work.

“Pundits will speculate that my effort and drive over the past 18 years were about mastery and about working to master every aspect of the NFL game,” Manning said while clearly choking up. “Well, don’t believe them. Because every moment, every drop of sweat, every bleary-eyed night of preparation, every note I took and every frame of film I watched was about one thing; reverence for this game.”

Manning ran through a long list of former coaches and teammates as well has fellow daunting opponents that motivated him to constantly try to improve. Among them, he thanked Demaryius Thomas, Bill Belichick, John Lynch and Charles Woodson for their contributions, either directly or indirectly for making him a better player. Sunday evening, his fellow teammate relayed to the world what Manning means to him and his teammates that just won a championship.

“There are some superstars who are great their entire career, but everyone can relate to Peyton because he’s had his shares of ups and downs,” Broncos linebacker Von Miller said Sunday. “He showed me exactly what a leader is. He was the perfect example of how to lead teammates for the rest of my career. If it wasn’t for him, I wouldn’t have had someone who showed me how to lead and how relate to guys on both sides of the ball and really the entire organization. The equipment guys, the trainers, the coaches, the importance of those relationships—that’s what I’ll take from watching him.”

His former team, the Indianapolis Colts had several sources of praise for Manning but owner Jim Irsay said it best when he described Manning’s all-encompassing impact on football.

“Few have left their marks on a sport as Peyton Manning has,” he said. “Simply put, he revolutionized NFL football. Peyton energized it as had no one before him, he made it more fun for our fans, and made the game better.”

His work ethic paid off in measurables everywhere he went. He owns the all-time most wins for a starting quarterback (200), he appeared in the playoffs a quarterback-record 15 times and threw for more regular season yards (71,940) and touchdowns (539) than anyone before him but according to President and CEO Joe Ellis that is not why he is so great.

“It was always about being the best teammate and the best person he could be,” Ellis said Monday. “Peyton, you were all that and more to the Denver Broncos and the National Football League. If there was a list of achievements needed to attain greatness, you have checked every box. We will miss watching you play quarterback. It has been a joy.”

His skills on the field and reputation off of it helped return the Broncos to greatness in just the four years he spent in Denver. After Elway coaxed him to his second team in March of 2012, Manning became an easy selling point to attract the necessary pieces to join the roster with Super Bowls in mind.

“From that day on, you look at what we have done the last four years. A lot of that is attributed to him,” Elway said confidently. “Bottom line is, I’d say, ‘Bowlen wants to win championships and you get to play with Peyton Manning’ and they [free agents] would say, ‘Where do I sign?’ And that is really what happened. And that’s why we were able to put these great teams together. It was because of what he was about, what he meant to this league, what his reputation was in this league and how he attracted football players.”

Manning possesses an incredible memory and his “reverence” for the game certainly added to his knowledge of football history and his respect for the not only the future but also the past of the NFL. He began his speech Monday with a story of his early games in the NFL and a meeting with the great Johnny Unitas. Nearly in tears, he recounted the meeting and how 18 years later it still has a lasting impact on him.

“I had a chance to shake Johnny Unitas’ hand,” he recalled. “He told me, ‘Peyton you stay at. I’m pulling for you.’ Well, I have stayed at it. I stayed at it for 18 years and I hope old number 19 is up there with his flat top and maybe his black high tops on. I hope he knows I have stayed at and maybe he is even a little proud of me. There is just something about 18 years. 18 is a good number and today I’m retiring from pro football.”

On a day that Manning was certainly celebrated, he humbly turned the tables thanking everyone he possibly could and he didn’t forget the organization that he helped return to glory.

“Grateful is the word that comes to my mind when I think about the Denver Broncos,” he said graciously.

The Broncos, the Indianapolis Colts and football fans in general should be forever thankful for Manning and his imprint on the game this country loves. In closing, as tears began to well up Manning made one thing clear, his decision to end his professional clear was hard to come to.

“I revere football,” he said nearly in tears. “I love the game, so you don’t have to wonder if I’ll miss it, absolutely, absolutely I will.”

Today, football is far more than just “grateful” for Manning after his tireless 18 years of not just building his legend but building the game with class, humility and compassion.  All those who have known him, watched him, played with and against him, will absolutely, absolutely miss No. 18.