Peyton Manning: Broncos' Challenging Schedule Will Wreak Havoc on Veteran QB

The Denver Broncos' challenging 2012 regular-season schedule will wreak havoc on veteran quarterback Peyton Manning. 

The 36-year-old signal caller missed all of last season after undergoing neck surgery, and will be under immense pressure to perform and improve the league's 31st-ranked passing attack from the opening snap in Week 1.

Denver will play seven playoff teams from a year ago, including three division winners, two of which they will face on the road. The 17-week journey will be far from easy and will no doubt wear down Manning by the arrival of the new year. 

With that said, let's see why this upcoming season promises to be a brutal one for Manning, who is still attempting to get up to NFL regular-season speed. 

Weeks 1-4

Denver will open the season up against the Pittsburgh Steelers. The Steelers boasted the NFL's No. 1 pass defense a season ago, and will have Manning scrambling to move the ball down field with a group of suspect wide receivers.

Eric Decker led the team with 44 receptions for 612 yards in 2011. Meanwhile, the Broncos have added another 36-year-old vet in Brandon Stokley. Stokley played in Denver from 2007 to 2009, but only managed one catch last season in two games with the New York Giants.

If Manning can survive the Pittsburgh game in Week 1, then he and the Broncos will be heading into Atlanta with a lot of momentum when they take on the Falcons on Monday Night Football. Atlanta was below average defending the pass in 2011, but that doesn't mean that Manning and company won't struggle to keep up with the Falcons' eighth-ranked passing attack in the perfect conditions of the Georgia Dome. 

In Week 3, Manning and the Broncos return home to face off against the defending AFC South champion Houston Texans, who boasted the league's third-best pass defense a season ago. In addition to shutting down opposing aerial assaults, the Texans also locked down their opponents' running lanes, ranking fourth in the NFL in rush defense.

A week later, Denver will host division rivals in the Oakland Raiders, who always play them tough, and who actually won in Denver last season. Although the Broncos will be favored, Manning will likely take some lumps in his first taste of the classic AFC West rivalry. 

Weeks 5-10

In Weeks 5 and 6, Manning and the Broncos will battle the New England Patriots and the San Diego Chargers on the road, two teams with Super Bowl aspirations in 2012. The Patriots were 7-1 at home last season and beat Denver by 35 points in Foxborough last January. The Broncos needed overtime to win by a field goal in San Diego last season, so a road game against their division rivals in 2012 seems far from a lock.

After a bye week in Week 7, Peyton Manning and the Broncos square off against the New Orleans Saints at Mile High, and then travel to play the Cincinnati Bengals and Carolina Panthers. Both teams possess second-year quarterbacks in Andy Dalton and Cam Newton, who are sure to improve leaps and bounds in 2012. The Bengals even boast a Top 10 defense.

Weeks 11-13

Weeks 11 and 12 feature back-to-back matchups with division rivals San Diego and Kansas City. Denver will get the Chargers at home, but then have to hit the road to face the Chiefs, who held them to three points at home in the two teams' 2011 regular-season finale. 

Manning and the Broncos will catch a break in Week 13 though, when they host the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Denver. The Bucs were pitiful last season, losing 10 straight to end the year after starting off 4-2.

Weeks 14-17

In Weeks 14 and 15, Denver will once again be on the road facing tough competition. The Broncos will finish their season series against Oakland first, and then travel across the country to face the defending AFC North champion Ravens in Baltimore. Baltimore ranked No. 4 in pass defense last season. 

Manning will finally breath a sigh of relief in the final two weeks of the regular season though, as Denver will host the Cleveland Browns and Kansas City Chiefs to round out the year, two teams that look beatable on paper. Still, many people forget that the Browns ranked No. 2 in pass defense last season despite their struggles overall. Meanwhile, the Chiefs ranked sixth defending the pass in 2011. Neither game will be easy.

After running down Denver's 16 regular-season games in 2012, we can determine that there is no doubt that the Broncos' schedule will wreak havoc on Peyton Manning. Denver has an incredibly challenging slate of games, and would be considered lucky to finish 8-8, let alone making the playoffs. 

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