Peyton Manning and Carson Palmer Would Not Be Elite With Rivals' Offenses

This article is in response to an article written by Ryan Michael.  I want to start off by saying that I think Ryan is an amazing writer, and I have very much respect for him.  However, on this point I disagree. 

Could Carson Palmer and Peyton Manning be as successful playing for the Steelers or Patriots?  My answer is a resounding no.

First, I want to take a look at the weapons that Palmer and Manning have been surrounded with.

Palmer—His WR position over the last few years has been very constant.  TJ Houshmandzadeh (6'1", 199; Round 7-31), Chad Johnson (6'1", 192; Round 2-4), and Chris Henry (6'1", 200; Round 3-19) have been his main weapons.

Manning—His WR Position over the last few years has been constant. Marvin Harrison (6', 185; Round 1-19), Reggie Wayne (6; 198; Round 1-30), and Dallas Clark (6'3", 252; Round 1-24).  I know Clark is listed as a TE, but in most multiple WR sets, he plays WR.

Roethlisberger—Ben has also had consistency at the WR position.  Hines Ward (6', 205; Round 3, 31), Santonio Holmes (5'11", 192; Round 1-25), and Nate Washington (6'1", 185, Undrafted), Antwan Randel El (5'10", 185; Round 2, 30). 

Brady- Troy Brown (5'10", 196. Round 8), Deion Branch (5'9", 193. Round 2-33), Bethel Johnson (5'11", 200; Round 2-13).

These were the WR's that were on the Steelers and Patriots for their Super Bowl winning teams.

The Colts used first round picks on their top three Receivers, (if you include Anthony Gonzalez, that number is 4).  Every WR that Palmer had to throw to was at least 6-1, with Chris Henry being 6-4.

The Steelers had only one WR that was over 6-0, and he was undrafted. In the Super Bowl years, Tom Brady had no WR over 6-0. 

Now lets take a look at the O-Lines that started for these teams this past year.

Colts—Tony Ugoh (Round 2-10), Charlie Johnson (Round 6-30), Jeff Saturday (FA), Mike Pollak (Round 2-28), and Ryan Diem (Round 4-23). Ryan Lilja was also brought in as a FA to start.

Bengals—Levi Jones (Round 1-10), Andrew Whitworth (Round 2-23), Eric Ghiaciuc (Round 4-18), Bobbie Williams (Round 2-30), and Stacy Andrews (Round 4-27).

Steelers—Max Starks (Round 3-12), Chris Kemoeatu (Round 6-30), Justin Hartwig (FA), Kendall Simmons (Round 1-30.  On IR, Replacement Darnell Stapelton was undrafted FA), and Willie Colon (Round 4-34)

Patriots—Matt Light (Round 2-17), Logan Mankins (Round 1-32), Dan Koppen (Round 5-29), Stephen Neal (FA), and Nick Kaczur (Round 3-36).

The Colts used one FA and two first-day picks on starting O-Line. The Bengals used three players taken in the first two rounds.

The only first-round pick for the Steelers was on IR and replaced by an undrafted FA.  The Patriots used first-day picks for almost everyone on their line.

If you add the totals up, Carson Palmer has bigger weapons to work with than the rest, with Peyton Manning coming in a close second.

Ben Roethlisberger and Tom Brady have worked with smaller receivers, and gotten more out of it.

Both the Colts and Bengals teams used multiple first-day picks on giving their star QB's weapons. But in today's NFL, free agency can help a team improve without having to draft. Here is a list of the top salaries for each team above.

This is how much each of the top players counted against the salary cap in 2008.

Indianapolis Colts

Peyton Manning (QB)—$18.7 million

Marvin Harrison (WR)—$12 million

Bob Sanders (S)—$8.75 million

Robert Mathis (DE)—$6.8 million

Reggie Wayne (WR)—$6.6 million

Ryan Diem (OL)—$6.3 million

Dwight Freeney (DE)—$5.75 million

Jeff Saturday (C)—$5.2 million

Raheem Brock (DT)—$4.72 million

Gary Brackett (LB)—$2.73 million

Dallas Clark (TE)—$2.5 million

Adam Vinatieri (K)—$2.35 million

Cincinnati Bengals

Carson Palmer (QB)—$13.9 million

Stacey Andrews (OL)—$7.45 million

Chad Johnson (WR)—$6.41 million

Antwan Odom (DE)—$5.7 million

Levi Jones (OL)—$5.27 million

Rudi Johnson (RB)—$4.65 million

John Thorton (DT)—$4.63 million

Willie Anderson (OL)—$4.4 million

Robert Gaethers (DE)—$4.24 million

TJ Houshmandzadeh (WR)—$3.7 million

Deltha O'Neal (CB)—$3.4 million

Reggie Kelly (TE)—$2.67 million

Bobbie Williams (OL)—$2.9 million

Ben Utecht (TE)—$2.67 million

David Pollack (LB)—$2.2 million

Pittsburgh Steelers

Ben Roethlisberger (QB)—$8 million

Max Starks (OL-Transition tag)—$7 million

Troy Polamalu (S)—$6.8 million

Hines Ward (WR)—$6.7 million

Marvel Smith (OL)—$6.6 million

Casey Hampton (DT)—$6.4 million

Ike Taylor (CB)—$5.75 million

Kendall Simmons (OL)—$5 million

Aaron Smith (DE)—$4.75 million

James Farrior (LB)—$4.5 million

Willie Parker (RB)—$4.1 million

Brett Keisel (DE)—$4 million

Larry Foote (LB)—$3.4 million

Ryan Clark (S)—$2.2 million

New England Patriots

Tom Brady (QB)—$14.6 million

Richard Seymour (DE)—$6.8 million

Randy Moss (WR)—$6 million

Adalius Thomas (LB)—$5.4 million

Matt Light (OL)—$5.2 million

Ty Warren (DE)—$4.6 million

Mike Vrabel (LB)—$4.2 million

Jarvis Green (DE)—$3.8 million

Rodney Harrison (S)—$3.7 million

Wes Welker (WR)—$3.7 million

Kevin Faulk (RB)—$3.5 million

Steve Neal (OL)—$3 million

Dan Koppen (OL)—$3 million

Sammy Morris (RB)—$2.1 million

Vince Wilfork (DT)—$2.1 million

These are the top salaries of each of the teams.  I did not count salaries of players that were under $2 million.

Of the top salaries here is how the money is spent on each side of the ball.

Colts.  O—$53.65 million, D—$28.75 million

Bengals.  O—$54.02 million, D—$20.17 million

Steelers. O—$37.4 million, D—$37.8 million

Patriots.  O—$41.1 million, D—$30.6 million.

The Colts are spending almost twice as much of their salary on the offensive side of the ball, and the Bengals are spending almost three times as much.

Pittsburgh's offense is making less than the defensive side of the ball. New England is spending a little more than $10 million on offense than defense, but the numbers are a lot closer than either the Colts or Bengals.

The point of this article is to show how, even though players like Carson Palmer and Peyton Manning have great numbers, their respective teams have made an emphasis on that side of the ball.

Most of their early picks and salary are going to the side of the ball that puts the points on the board.  They should have better numbers.

Had either of these players been playing in Pittsburgh or New England, their supporting cast would have been nowhere near as good, and their numbers would have reflected it.