Manning at His Best in '07

Turn on the television, open a newspaper, or listen to the radio. What will you hear? Talk about the Patriots going undefeated. Terrell Owens’ ankle. The Tuna is headed to Miami. Even Bill Belichick’s Christmas plans.

What you will fail to hear is talk of the defending Super Bowl winning quarterback and how quietly he has had his best season yet as a pro.

Peyton Manning has not put up the stats he has had in the past this 2007 season. He has his lowest passer rating in the last five years. He threw six interceptions in a 23-21 loss at San Diego, and his 14 interceptions are the most since 2002 when he had 19. How can this season be his best yet?

The Indianapolis Colts have had a myriad of injuries in 2007. Manning has been missing Marvin Harrison for more than half the season. Pro Bowl left tackle Tarik Glenn unexpectedly retired at the beginning of the year. He’s relied heavily on a rookie. Yet Manning will throw for over 4,000 yards once again. He’s fumbled five times and lost one. Tom Brady has also fumbled five times this year. He’s lost four of them.

Manning’s 31 touchdowns may not impress you, but he’s fourth in the league this season, behind only Brady, Tony Romo, and Ben Roethlisberger. Only Roethlisberger has fewer attempts than Manning, but he’s also taken 16 more sacks and won three fewer games. Romo has had the best season in Cowboys quarterback history, throwing for five more touchdowns, four more interceptions, and just under 200 yards more than Manning has in '07. Romo has a completion percentage of 65.1, while Manning’s is 64.7. Reggie Wayne is a great receiver, but he’s not Terrell Owens.

The loss of Harrison hasn’t really shown up in the stat sheet for the Colts. Take Owens from Romo or Moss from Brady and see what you are left with. Without TO in the lineup Romo has struggled to say the least. Last season Brady threw 24 touchdown passes. Losing a guy who is going to put up 80 receptions and 1,000 yards should dwarf a quarterback’s numbers. Not this guy.

The argument could be made that the Colts are undefeated with Harrison in the lineup. With two losses by a total of six points, the person making that argument would be hard to dispute. A botched chip-shot field goal and a pass interference penalty is all that stands between Manning and the attention Tom Brady is receiving despite being without Harrison.

Manning is on pace to break every significant passing record the NFL has, save for maybe Steve Young’s career passer rating, of which he is only a few points shy. But Manning will tell you that the one stat that matters the most to him involves rings. Give him his number one receiver and a week off to prepare, and you have to agree the odds at getting another one are pretty good, even if the road to Glendale runs through Foxborough.

The 2007 version of Peyton Manning may not have the numbers of Tom Brady, the appeal of Tony Romo, or the legacy of Brett Favre, but he’s still a 6’5", 230-pound quarterback with a laser-rocket arm and the experience of having won the big one.