Adding injury to insult.
For 39-year old quarterback Peyton Manning, it’s not just that he played terribly yesterday — throwing four interceptions in the Denver Broncos 29-13 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs before being benched — but Manning is also injured.
News came out last Wednesday that he had plantar fasciitis, then it was his rib cage which was sore on Friday. But Manning, always the fierce competitor, wanted to play and did. After the loss, head coach Gary Kubiak said, “I should have made the decision not to play him,” about Manning. It looks like Kubiak was right, for health reasons.
Denver's Peyton Manning has torn plantar fascia in right foot, league sources tell ESPN. Manning was battling plantar fasciitis; worsened.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) November 16, 2015
Eli Manning played with fully torn plantar fascia in 2009; Peyton Manning's is partial tear, which is more painful to play through.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) November 16, 2015
It was clear on Sunday afternoon Manning didn’t have the velocity needed to make the pigskin fly where he wanted; the first pick he woefully under threw Vernon Davis up the seam and on the fourth one, the ball floated in the air as he was unable to drive his shoulder through the throw.
Hey, Manning’s a warrior, never missing a start outside of being rested and the neck surgeries. We get it. NFL players are commended for their toughness and being able to play through injuries. But, they also have to gauge whether or not playing through the pain will help or hurt their team.
Manning hurt his team on Sunday, it’s as simple as that. So did Emmanuel Sanders, who fell down on a comeback route which led to the second interception on the day. And, after the loss, Manning admitted as much saying, “By going out there and trying to help the team, it hurt the team.”
So, what happens next? Last night, Kubiak insisted that Manning is still the Broncos quarterback, but only if the 39-year old is healthy. Clearly he is not 100 percent — no football player is mid-way through November — but he’s also so far from perfect health he’s hurting his team.
More Broncos – Chiefs news:
Gary Kubiak: “Peyton is our quarterback”
Peyton Manning: “I felt good enough to play, it ended up hurting our team”
T.J. Ward sounds off on Chiefs: “They are a pretty dirty team”
Recap: Chiefs beat-down Broncos 29-13
Gary Kubiak: “I should have made the decision not to play Peyton Manning”
