The refrain out of the Denver Broncos and Peyton Manning camps this offseason has been that the aging signal-caller's putrid end to the 2015 season, capped by an abysmal showing during a first-round playoff loss to the Indianapolis Colts, was soon-to-be forgotten and that Manning would bounce back after healing fully from nagging hamstring injuries and return to some semblance of his formerly elite form for, hopefully, one final push for a second Super Bowl ring. Unfortunately, it seems that Manning's physical limitations from last year have again manifested themselves this preseason. A handful of NFL execs, speaking to Albert Breer of NFL.com, sounded a very negative tone when discussing Manning's prospects for the 2015 season.
An AFC pro personnel director indicated to Breer that Manning looked "limited" and that his already limited arm strength was now "significantly diminished." Breer asked that an NFC executive go back and watch all of Manning's snaps from August. He concluded that Manning had become "immobile" and "flinches under pocket pressure."
"They don't do as much from the shotgun (under Gary Kubiak) as they did in the past, and he lacks the mobility to take the majority of his snaps from underneath the center," the AFC executive said, per Breer. "They also do too much boot and move the pocket too much for (him)."
Kubiak himself indicated earlier this offseason after taking over for the recently departed John Fox, that part of what made his zone blocking, heavy play action offense work so well with the Baltimore Ravens was quarterback Joe Flacco's athleticism - something that doesn't seem to bode well for the 39-year-old Manning.
"I keep going back to being with (Joe) Flacco last year," Kubiak told NFL.com then. "Joe's very athletic, and I think we booted 26 or 27 times in 16 games. We're not out there booting all the time, but if people don't hold on the run, we're gonna boot, and Peyton has done it at practice. He actually gets mad at me when I give the boot reps to a younger quarterback, he looks at it like, 'Hey, what about me?' I think he's been very challenged. He's had to learn some new stuff, and that's good for everybody."
Still, it wasn't all doom and gloom for Manning. Another AFC executive indicated to Breer that the future Hall of Famer still have gas left in the tank.
"You're aware the zip and velocity isn't there, but he's a very, very cerebral quarterback," the executive told Breer. "He plays within his limitations, he has a quick release and he has weapons."
With Brock Osweiler waiting in the wings and the team reportedly high on the former second-round pick, it may not be long before Manning is watching someone else work under center as the leader of the Broncos offense.
