Peyton Manning: Denver Broncos QB Finally Proves He Will Be Elite Again in 2012

On Sunday night against the San Francisco 49ers' vaunted defense, Peyton Manning finally looked like the $96 million man that the Denver Broncos expected when they signed him back in March.

In just one single quarter, Manning torched the 49ers' first-stringers for 122 yards and two touchdowns on 10-of-12 passing. No. 18 only played in one drive in which his team didn’t score a touchdown, and he led them to an easy field goal on that possession.

Perhaps the most important aspect of this preseason contest was the health of the future Hall of Famer’s neck.

Peyton took another hard hit this week and popped right back up. He was throwing to his right with ease, which was reportedly a problem less than a week ago, according to ESPN's John Clayton.

We did not, however, see any deep balls from the former Indianapolis Colts legend, so the zip on those could not be judged.

This is great news for Manning and Broncos fans everywhere, as this performance finally proves the doubters wrong and provides optimism for the defending AFC West champions going into the 2012 campaign.

While Manning still has a long way to go toward reaching the elite status he attained as the Colts signal-caller, the game against San Francisco was a significant step toward that goal.

The Broncos open the season against the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday, Sept. 9. If Manning can put up similar numbers during a game that counts and lead his team to victory, people will be talking about another potential Super Bowl in Mile High before you know it.