While watching the Broncos/Chiefs game I became aware of Peyton Manning apparently having some difficulty throwing the ball down field on the longer routes. After one throw for an incomplete pass on third down he appeared to walk off the field with his arm hanging down as when a shoulder is injured. After that I noticed he had to put a lot of effort into any pass that was more than 10-15 yards. Also, the ball did not have the zip on it that it should have, with most of the throws having more of a "rainbow" arc to them. He had some passes too low and behind the receivers and on the long patterns was way off a few times. One of the announcers remarked one pass was a wounded duck wobbler. All this along with the second game with a large percentage of rushing plays brought out the question, "Is this the last year for him?" Am I correct or did I just imagine what I have described?
His balls definitely have a different trajectory. I don't know if the change in philosophy is tied to an arm that's fading late on the season or acknowledging they have to be able to run the ball. But I think it's obvious it's almost gone.
Lol. He's just old. He's had this probably all season. I would day this is his last year. Jmo tho. He sucks anyway.
Pretty sure I noticed a decline late last year, and thought he looked even worse at the beginning of this year. I said on this forum his balls were getting slower even while he was throwing for 400 yards and a gazillion touchdowns. The dude's body is giving out, and that didn't start mid season.
I mentioned this earlier, rb. I saw it as well. I'll go as far as to say that yes last year it dropped off as well. But this year it's even more of a drop off and something just doesn't look right.
Once you hit 35, each year ages you athletically 5 "years" if you ask me. You can cover it up with scheme, intelligence and experience. But there comes a time when you just cannot throw it out there anymore. And while he is still a top 5 QB in the league, someone like him is not designed to be top 5, but The Guy. I honestly hope he retires after this year, as I don't want to see him pull a Joe Namoth/Johnny Unitas. But, if he wants to play until he is 50, that is his prerogative, and he should.
The wildcard, of course, is Peyton's competitive desire to hold on, for well or ill. I don't think that anyone beyond Peyton can accurately predict where the balance between his mental and physical states may finally tip too far in one direction, and where it overrides his desire to continue. Peyton knows better than anyone that he isn't the same QB (much of what you now observe in his throwing motion / spin are adaptations that he has purposefully made to mask or account for his physical deterioration), but how far he's willing to sink below his HOF-level abilities, is anyone's guess, but his. I do know that when he decides to hang it up, that he'll announce it, and it'll happen immediately. No swan song. No final appreciation tour. And from that standpoint, if this was his final year, or if he was even seriously thinking it could be, no one would know it, save maybe 4-5 people, max. But if he did hang it up this season, I'd expect it to happen just as its now going down.
