Denver Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning is a hot topic in the NFL at the moment.
After the Broncos decided to unexpectedly part ways with head coach John Fox and in the wake of his incredibly poor performance in a loss to the Indianapolis Colts in the playoffs, rumors have begun to swirl that Manning may be facing his own uncertain future in Denver.
A report emerged after the Broncos' season ended, from Adam Schefter of ESPN, that Manning had injured muscles in both legs and that was why he had seemed so incapable of pushing the ball downfield against the Colts.
Now, Albert Breer of NFL.com has amassed the personal scouting reports of a handful of scouts and executives around the league who watched Manning and the Broncos appear feckless and entirely ineffective in the season's biggest moment.
Their conclusions do not bode well for Manning's NFL future:
From an AFC executive: "Saw a lack of velocity, declining arm strength. No juice or zip on throws. Shelf life."
One NFC scout said: "It's sad watching him, even more sad how Denver treated one of the greatest. Arm looks shot, sad seeing him look like that, knowing how big a competitor he is."
An AFC scout: "Missed deep ball, routine throws were getting knocked down because he couldn't drive the ball, timing was off. Never looked like he could get in a routine. He couldn't dictate the game like normal because he just couldn't make the throws that needed to be made."
And an NFC exec: "Terrible overthrows and incompletions. He may be hurt."
And when asked if they thought this was it, the NFC exec said, "Just look at his last five weeks," while the AFC exec opined that the Broncos know it is: "My suspicions are we saw the spike in their rushing offense (over the second half of the season) to help him."
The Colts, per Breer, said they could see these things on film prior to the meeting. Their goal was to make the notoriously sharp Manning uncomfortable by bringing pressure and forcing him to push the ball downfield, something they didn't think he could do.
"Make him uncomfortable in the pocket," said Colts defensive lineman Arthur Jones. "He's not the best in cold weather. It was anything -- get a hand up, punch the pocket, get guys in the face. We were watching him on the sideline bitch and complain to his offensive line. Any time you see that as a defensive player, you're like a shark -- there's blood in the water."
With Manning looking altogether lost Sunday and, if Breer's unnamed scouts and execs are right, physically incapable and the Broncos already in a state of turmoil otherwise, the formerly promising future for Denver now looks bleak indeed.
