On Losing a Legend

Brian Spicklemire discusses the five stages of losing his QB.

Well, we’re here, at a point that I never wanted to think about. A point that a mere four months ago I didn’t think would actually happen.

Peyton Manning, the most important athlete that the city of Indianapolis has ever known, is no longer an Indianapolis Colt.

His impact to the team and the city has been written about time and time again, but it bears repeating: his presence and play elevated this franchise, saved them from departing for Los Angeles, built a brand new stadium and brought the Super Bowl to Indianapolis. He was a remarkable citizen, extremely charitable, (his name is on two children's hospitals in town) and seemingly just a nice, down-to-earth kinda guy.

He was able to read a defense at the line of scrimmage as easy as you or I read a take-out menu, and always had the right audible ready to go. He made "ohmigoshdidyoujustseethat?" passes down the seam to Reggie Wayne as effortlessly as he made us laugh in dozens of commercials.

He was our quarterback.

This time last year, living in the aftermath of a disappointing, injury-plagued 2010 campaign and wild-card round loss to the Sanchize, I was looking forward to the team re-grouping, filling some gaps along the offensive line in the draft, re-signing Manning to a contract that would last for the rest of his career, and making a run at playing in the Super Bowl that our own city was hosting.

Then came reports of a second neck surgery, and the prospect of him missing training camp. Then came news of a third neck surgery, and that he would miss the season opener and end his consecutive-games streak happened. Then, the ‘Suck for Luck’ jokes started popping up on local sports talk radio shows. Then, the jokes got serious. Then 2-14 happened, and owner Jim Irsay and Manning started going back and forth in sharp P.R. statements that had all the charm of two middle-schoolers trying to dump the other one, but make sure everyone knows, ‘Hey, it’s not my fault, it’s their fault.’

Then, it happened. We had seen it coming, but when the words ‘Peyton Manning to be released from the Colts’ flashed across my screen, it was still surreal. The presser was tough to watch. Irsay clearly cared about Manning, and had a tough, heart-wrenching decision to make. Manning cared about staying in one place where he meant so much for his whole career, something his Dad never got a chance to do, and you could tell from the choked words that he cared about the fans, cared about the city.

It was an awful decision to make, but it was the right one. Irsay and the Colts are clearly in full rebuilding mode, as evidenced by the fire sale they had Friday afternoon, releasing 4 key pieces from the two Super Bowl runs, and Curtis Painter, and reportedly shopping Dwight Freeney out to the highest bidder. The Colts have Andrew Luck to look forward to, (and if he can win a single game with this now depleted roster, then he deserves all the hype that’s been heaped on him,) and probably have the inside track on next year’s #1 pick.

As sad as I am to see Manning go, I’m glad for him that he doesn’t have to play behind an empty O-line and get his teeth kicked in every week throughout the rebuilding project. I’m glad he has a chance to go somewhere and cement his legacy as the great quarterback to ever play them game. As sports fans, we’d be losing out if Manning never played again, or was stuck on a team that was going nowhere. There’s no greater shame then to have a transcendent player stuck on a pathetic team that has no way out, (cue Steve Nash nodding sadly.) I don’t know where he goes from here, but I hope it’s someplace that puts him in a position to win immediately.

Oddly enough, I think the best landing spot for him is with the guy he replaced as Colts QB 14 years ago, and coached up his replacement at Stanford, (though I doubt San Francisco would give him a serious look; they’re oddly content with Alex Smith.) Of the most likely landing spots, (Denver, Arizona, and Miami,) the best place for him is probably Denver, (great defense and strong running game, same combo that won Elway his Super Bowls in the twilight if his career) or Arizona, (Larry Fitzgerald is probably the best receiver in the game, and he’d have most of his games in a controlled/friendly-weather environment.)

If he wants to win immediately, he goes to one of those two places. On the other hand, if he cares about proving to everyone once and for all that he’s better than Brady, he’d have his chance to go head to head with the Patriots and Belichick, (who’s head space he currently resides,) if he goes to Miami, (and would unquestionably have the highest selling jersey in the history of sports.) The Dolphins could make him the richest player in the NFL, but I don’t think we see him announce that he’s taking his talents to south beach.

At the press conference, Manning talked about the uncertainty of his future and reflected on the past, saying "I haven't thought about yet where I'll play, but I have thought about where I've been. I've been blessed." It was the stoic, thoughtful Manning response we’ve come to respect, but interspersed with the tearful, choked words as the memories of his time in Indy came back to him. And those same words made me reflect about where I was for the major moments of his career. Where I was when through all the twelve win seasons and tough play-off losses. Where I was when he led the comeback against the Patriots in the 2006 AFC championship game, on the way to a Super Bowl victory. It reminded me where I was when he scared Belichick into going for it on 4^th-and-2 deep in his own territory. And it reminded me where I was when he took his last snap as a Colt, sitting in my seat at Lucas Oil Stadium, ‘The House Peyton Built,’ trying to one last time put the team on his shoulders and elevate the players around him and beat the Jets in that AFC Wildcard round. And if not for Jim Caldwell’s boneheaded time-out, he might have done it.

 

At the end of the Q&A section of the press conference Wednesday, Peyton was asked if he had anything to prove when he came back, wherever that may be. He brushed it off, saying that at this point in his career he wasn’t thinking about those sorts of things. But I think he’s wrong. I got a voicemail from Chris Friday night saying that he overheard a conversation between father and son. The son had reportedly asked who Peyton Manning was, and the father replied, “That’s Eli’s brother.” Manning’s injury caused him to miss the year-of-the-QB, where not only did Drew Brees break Marino’s longstanding single-season passing yards record, but 3 quarterback threw for over 5,000 yards. New rules have made quarterback the single most important position in sports, and it’s up to Manning now to prove that he’s the class of that position. I hope he comes back to the game and picks up where he left off. I hope he breaks every passing related record that exists, (except for all-time interception leader, Favre can keep that one,) and makes the case for his 5^th MVP award. I hope he leads his next team to a Super Bowl, and puts on the kind of aerial assault that I’ve become accustomed to over the years. I hope he’s great again, because we’re all richer as sports fans when he is.

 

And I hope that when it’s all said and done, he comes back home to Indianapolis.

 

 

Brian Spicklemire is a composer, percussionist, and graduate student at Butler University, where his thesis is currently driving him crazy. Check out his work on Soundcloud and on his website at http://www.brianspicklemire.com.