Peyton Manning learned how to be an NFL quarterback by being put into action right away. Twenty-six years, two Super Bowl rings, and a gold jacket later, the lessons of that season — and being thrust into the Indianapolis Colts’ starting lineup right away — are still burned in his consciousness.
So, when asked what advise he’d give to Broncos rookie quarterback Bo Nix, he immediately thought of the lessons he’d learned from his long-ago professional baptism by fire.
“I think experience is still your best teacher,” Manning stated on Wednesday, moments before being honoured by the Mizel Institute as the winner of the 2024 Community Enrichment Award.
“I think any quarterback would tell you — being out there on the field, you just learn more things than you do sitting on the sideline,” Manning said shortly thereafter. “Any quarterback will tell you this.
“So when that happens, you know, for Bo and these quarterbacks, Sean will make that decision.
“However, I believe experience is your best teacher. It is a marathon, not a sprint, correct?”
Nix will not be named the Broncos’ starter. Having stated that…
“I can tell how excited Sean [Payton] is to have Bo here,” Manning stated.
Manning is, too. After all, Nix was a member of the Manning Passing Academy.
“I remember just talking to Bo when he was thinking about transferring,” Manning stated. “And so we’ve kind of stayed in touch, and I’m super happy for him to be here.”
Peyton Manning gained experience the hard way.
In 1998, he began his first season with the Indianapolis Colts by starting the game. He remained in their starting lineup for 13 years and 227 games before retiring due to neck issues.
Peyton Manning was the lone Colts quarterback to throw a pass in 1998. They never benched him, even as the interceptions increased.
However, his touchdown passes also increased. While his 28 interceptions remain an NFL rookie record, his 26 touchdown passes rank third among rookies in NFL history.
By year two, Manning had joined the sport’s elite. The Colts improved from 3-13 — “and (I) didn’t play very well,” Manning admits — to 13-3 and their first AFC East title in a decade years.
“There is no way that would have happened if I hadn’t played and gone through those struggles and interceptions and realized, ‘Hey, okay, I can’t do that anymore.'” “Hey, these guys are faster,” Manning remarked.
Six years later, his younger brother, Eli Manning, was also drafted first overall. However, the New York Giants did not immediately insert him into the lineup, instead starting the 2004 season with Kurt Warner.
Eli Manning made his first professional start in the Giants’ tenth game of the season.
“He said what he learned in the [seven] that he played was night and day compared to the [nine] that he sat,” Peyton Manning stated. “So, we’ll see how it all shakes out.”
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