The 'rental' and/or 'buying' a title narrative is comical really.

The guy is blasted for his playoff record and the picture is painted as if the cupboard was bare in Denver before his arrival. Yet, they are buying a title?

I get the angst towards Denver around here, but this is crazy talk.

Yeah, I'm sure alot of the talk like this thread is purely sour grapes. Having said that, I do get the premise of the the thread. In 1989 for example, I hated Denver, I hated Elway, and it made my day as much if the donks lost as if the chiefs won. I think that was because Elway was a bronco through and through. They drafted him (sort of), and he was the franchise. And of course, as history would show, he went on to define them.

This donk team is different. Manning made all his hooplah as a colt. I don't hate the colts. I don't like them, but its different. They haven't been in our division. So, while I still hate the donks, Manning doesn't define them, so my hate with him at the helm is less. Make sense? Probably not, but I feel sort of the same way.

In '97 and '98, it was gut wrenching to watch Elway's broncos hoist the trophy. Now, it's not the broncos, its Manning. It's just not the same.

But your premise is completely wrong. The Chiefs "lured" arguably the best QB of all time and they didn't even reach the Superbowl. Marino only got to the Superbowl once. The Colts had Manning for many years and only got there twice. In fact, before now, everyone on this board liked to talk about how Manning is a choke artist and would never get Denver to a championship.

It is categorically false that a team can buy a championship simply by bringing in a top QB. Denver has a spectacular receiving corps consisting mostly of home-grown talent and a pretty spectacular o-line. That's why Denver has one of the best offenses ever--better even than Manning's previous offenses with the Colts.

I love how imbeciles on the Interwebs suggest that they would be willing to physically fight over something like a sports argument, if they were having said argument in person. :facepalm:

I gotta offer a couple of counterpoints.

In the past, a top QB wasn't a guarantee. In 2013, it's a guarantee unless Manning completely chokes (which admittedly is possible). The game has fundamentally changed over the last three years as the NFL changes its rules to increase its marketing appeal to non-fans, and it's nothing but a scoring derby now. It's the highest scoring season in NFL history, with the most yards and most passing yards ever recorded. The league is in completely uncharted waters, so history can't inform us of what works and what doesn't work. All we can do is look at this season.

Second, an objective person can't say that Denver has a "spectacular receiving corps". Other than Welker, those same players were no-name journeymen before Manning came on board. Manning makes them look spectacular, but it's all Manning. The Broncos aren't drafting gems in the late rounds where they got people like Julius Thomas and Eric Decker. The truth is that in this era a quarterback like Manning will make everyone around him a pro bowler. It's the way the game works now.

Congrats on your Super Bowl win, I guess.

Pretty sure Demaryius Thomas caught 10 balls for 297 yards over a two game span in the playoffs with Tim ****ing Tebow throwing him the ball.

I'm pretty sure Tyler Thigpen once had a 300-yard passing game, too. And Derrick Blaylock once scored four touchdowns in one half.

Thomas' two years before Manning arrived:

22 receptions for 283 yards
32 receptions for 551 yards

Thomas' two years after Manning arrived:

94 receptions for 1,434 yards
92 receptions for 1,430 yards

I'll recognize that Thomas was injured a lot his first couple of years, but I detect a pattern in the data above, and it points toward Manning making receivers look great even if they're not.

Julius Thomas' stats:

JThomas' one year before Manning arrived:

1 receptions for 5 yards

JThomas' two years after Manning arrived:

0 receptions for 0 yards (Appeared in only four games)
65 receptions for 788 yards

Eric Decker's stats:

Decker's two years before Manning arrived:

6 receptions for 106 yards
44 receptions for 612 yards

Decker's two years after Manning arrived:

85 receptions for 1,064 yards
87 receptions for 1,288 yards


Seriously, teams should not draft anybody but quarterbacks any more. Draft QBs with your top three picks every year until you find one that works. At that point you can plug in 3rd round receivers and 7th round tight ends all day and they'll be pro bowlers.

And I should note that I'm not trashing the Broncos with this. This is true throughout the league. If you get Aaron Rodgers, every receiver on his team becomes a star. Tom Brady's team made it to the AFC Championship using a high school contingent of receivers. A good quarterback converts everyone on the team into a pro bowler in the modern system.

Lol, Manning hasn't hoisted anything yet. He still has to play the most dangerous team in the NFL right now, a team with a defense that could put his lights out if you know what I mean.

The only thing the Manning led Broncos have done is position themselves one game from the championship, that is all. If they lose it will be hilarious.

[QUOTE=Rain Man;10382756]


Seriously, teams should not draft anybody but quarterbacks any more. Draft QBs with your top three picks every year until you find one that works...[QUOTE]

I'm all for drafting a QB at least once every draft until you land one. It is like the lottery, you can't win unless you purchase a ticket, and drafting a QB is purchasing that ticket.

What will be funny about it?

I always find it interesting how someone who's a fan of teams like the Chiefs, Royals, Cubs, etc. can laugh at a team who loses in a game their team hasn't reached in decades.

First you guys talk smack that Manning won't get there.....now you're talking that he won't win. What's next?

I know, right? Losing in the Super Bowl, what a joke. Thank God the Colts spared us from that embarrassment.

I really don't think he's a first-ballot hall of famer. Maybe he'll sneak in in a lean year.

Christ, not the WR argument again. :facepalm:


Peyton puts the ball in the perfect spot almost every time. Take him out and their production drops by 30-40%.