Steelers vs. Broncos: Full Week 1 Report Card for Denver QB Peyton Manning

The Peyton Manning-era went off with fireworks in Denver, as the veteran quarterback led a very complete-looking squad to victory on Sunday night versus the Pittsburgh Steelers. 

The final score was 31-19, and although Denver was tested by Ben Roethlisberger and his Pittsburgh offense, there was no real blunder to note in Manning's performance. 

Manning finished 19-for-26, with 253 passing yards and two touchdowns. He did not throw an interception. 

All in all, Denver fans are going to sleep the happiest they have in quite some time. 

First Quarter

Engines were definitely just getting warmed up in the first quarter. 

The quarter ended as it began, with both teams showing zeroes on the scoreboard. Aside from a Willis McGahee fumble, it wasn't too noteworthy a quarter. 

As for Peyton Manning, he looked sharp while hitting receivers on screens and slants, yet he did overthrow Demaryius Thomas. In his defense, Manning rushed that play in an attempt to penalize Pittsburgh for having too many men on the field. The play should have been botched, yet the refs did not cite Pittsburgh for the infraction. 

Overall, the first quarter was full of conservative football, and the clock did not stop often. 

Manning's Grade: B

Second Quarter

In the second quarter, everyone got to see the Peyton Manning football that made him, well, Peyton Manning. 

Manning and his offense got the ball with 10:10 on the clock following a touchback. In just under five minutes, Manning drove the team, making smart, short passes that had low risk and high reward. 

Manning read the Steelers defense beautifully, avoiding pressure, and he was not sacked. He handed the rock off to Knowshon Moreno, who ran it in for a touchdown to complete the 80-yard drive. 

Manning Grade: A+

Third Quarter

Peyton Manning only took two snaps in the third quarter, but boy did he make them count. 

Manning and his offense took the field after Big Ben led the Steelers on a nine-minute drive that resulted in just a field goal. 

With 6:05 on the clock, Manning completed a nine-yard pass from the Denver 20 to Eric Decker. Facing 2nd-and-1 on the next play, Pittsburgh sent a heavy blitz that overpowered the Denver offensive line. 

Manning, reading the blitz like a child reads Dr. Seuss, quickly dumped the ball off to Demaryius Thomas, who was just behind the line of scrimmage to Manning's left. Thomas took off for 71 yards and stopped after he crossed the goal line. 

While Thomas obviously deserves a huge applause for making this touchdown happen (as does Zane Beadles, who was downfield blocking for his receiver), this play could have easily been a momentum-crushing sack. Manning avoided this by reading the blitz and thinking quick—classic Manning. 

Manning's Grade: A+

Fourth Quarter

When Peyton Manning and Co. got the ball with 14:11 remaining in the game, they once again found themselves in the red. 

Big Ben found Mike Wallace for a touchdown to start the fourth quarter, and Denver was down 19-14 when Manning snapped the ball. 

In just over five minutes, Manning and his teammates were once again celebrating a touchdown. The drive was again a classic Manning drive; the passing plays were smart and short, the defense was well read, and the running backs did their job. Manning found tight end Jacob Tamme for a short score and then running back Willis McGahee for the two-point conversion. 

After Denver's defense did its job efficiently, Manning was back on the field with 8:18 to go. Denver was playing "eat the clock" at this point, so the majority of the drive featured running plays. Manning did have a nice 18-yard-completion to Tamme, yet he threw two incompletions before Denver settled for a Matt Prater field goal. 

Nonetheless, this was only icing at this point, and Tracy Porter decided to make the cake even a little sweeter when he had a brilliant pick-six later in the quarter. 

Manning's Grade: A

Overall Grade

In the end, Peyton Manning's comeback performance on Sunday night was nothing short of brilliant. 

He looked in immaculate health, his form was picture perfect and his composure was as stoic as ever. Manning barely even appeared sweaty in his postgame interview, when he, of course, complimented Ben Roethlisberger and the Steelers. 

Manning knows the season ahead with be challenging. Denver faces a tough schedule, and Pittsburgh is not the toughest team it will battle. 

As long as the Denver defense continues to play as well as it did and the running backs ran as well as they did, Peyton's job is, relatively speaking, easy. In Indianapolis, Peyton always thrived on his foundation, as any good quarterback does. He'll do his job flawlessly and only start to (seemingly) hustle when he absolutely needs to. 

If this game is an accurate omen, however, 2012 should be a good year for Denver. 

Final Grade for Manning: A