Denver Broncos Need to Sink or Swim with Peyton Manning in NFL Playoffs

Peyton Manning's steady, effective performance Sunday in a top-seed-clinching victory over the San Diego Chargers indicates that Manning's Week 10 benching in favor of young backup Brock Osweiler might have been a blessing in disguise for the Denver Broncos. 

Hampered by a partially torn plantar fascia in his left foot, the NFL's all-time passing yardage and touchdown leader needed a break. He looked uncomfortable and out of whack, and with 14 interceptions in a six-game span dating back to Week 4, it became evident he was doing more harm than good under center. 

Had the Broncos—who at that point had lost back-to-back games after a 7-0 start—not come to their senses and sat the limping 39-year-old, their entire season might have gone off the rails. 

The 25-year-old Osweiler isn't a franchise quarterback, but he's been healthy and mildly effective. That, combined with stellar play from the Denver defense, was enough to give the Broncos a 4-2 record in Manning's absence. 

But now that Manning's healthy, he deserves his team back. 

Jack Dempsey/Associated Press

Throughout December and late November, the word from Broncos head coach Gary Kubiak was that Osweiler would start so long as Manning wasn't healthy. But then Manning declared himself healthy and was active Week 17, so it was rather strange seeing Kubiak stick with Osweiler. 

I mean, think about it. Osweiler had never started an NFL game until November. Sure, the Broncos were winning with him under center, but he also entered Sunday ranked in the bottom 12 in football in terms of passer rating, QBR and yards per attempt. 

He took sacks nearly twice as often as an injured Manning, and numbers from Pro Football Focus were discouraging to say the least:

• Osweiler's deep completion percentage of 25.9 ranked second-last among 35 qualified passers, 4.1 points lower than an injured Manning. He also attempted fewer deep passes than Manning and had a lower yards-per-attempt average.
• Osweiler was significantly less accurate under pressure than an injured Manning was. 

We could use our own eyes to see that the new starter was skittish when under duress and struggled immensely when his early reads weren't available, which is why too much was made of the fact the Broncos won four games with Osweiler at quarterback. Two of those victories came against bad Chicago and San Diego teams, and the other two came at home against the immensely shorthanded Patriots and Bengals. 

And it became evident on Sunday that he can't be trusted in big spots.

Logically, even before seeing Osweiler throw two interceptions in the first half of Sunday's crucial game against the Chargers, it should have been obvious that even a close-to-healthy Manning gives Denver a better chance at winning the Super Bowl than the inexperienced and flawed Osweiler. 

Category	Manning	Osweiler
Record as primary QB	8-2	4-2
Completion %	59.8	61.8
TD-INT	9-17	10-6
Yards/attempt	6.8	7.2
Passer rating	67.9	85.5

Broncos fans should thank the football gods that Kubiak came to his senses and gave Manning a shot with Denver trailing in the third quarter Sunday. Because for the first time in months, Manning looked crisp and centered. He didn't carry the Broncos on his shoulders, but he didn't come close to making a mistake. He was accurate and his presence appeared to give the running game a boost as the Broncos came back to win. KOA radio host Mike Rice caught up with Kubiak after the game to discuss the topic.

Now, despite the fact Kubiak remains coy, there should be no doubt who Denver's quarterback is entering the Divisional Playoffs. 

This team might not win the Super Bowl with No. 18, but does anybody think its chances are better with No. 17? And at this point in Denver, it's undoubtedly Super Bowl or bust. A franchise that once saw John Elway redeem himself with Super Bowl runs beyond his prime has to know better than to deny one of the best athletes of this generation an opportunity to defy reason one more time. 

If you lose with Manning, you'll have swung the bat one last time with one of the greatest players in history—the guy you're paying nearly $18 million for this chance. If you lose with Osweiler, you'll always wonder what could have been. 

Remember, the timeline might be less extreme, but at one point in 2014, most of us were declaring Tom Brady finished. When that season concluded, he was toting another Super Bowl ring.

David Zalubowski/Associated Press

Don't mess with the game's immortals. 

Late in his career, Roger Clemens did away with spring training and the early months of the Major League Baseball season. He was old and tired and could only remain on top of his game for shorter stints, which is why he didn't take the mound until June in each of his final two seasons. And it worked. 

By taking six weeks to put his body and mind back together, Manning might incidentally be utilizing the same strategy. He's fresh now and the AFC playoffs run through Denver. 

One more time, let's see what Peyton Manning's got. 

Brad Gagnon has covered the NFL for Bleacher Report since 2012.

Follow @Brad_Gagnon