Have we seen the last of the Brady-Manning battles?
Tom Brady (right) and Peyton Manning shake hands after a matchup between the Patriots and Broncos.Globe Staff Photo/Jim Davis
COMMENTARY
So, are we still going to get Brady-Manning XVII only 12 days from now, or will we instead be subjected to Episode I of Brady-Osweiler?
After the dreadful performance of Denver Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning on Sunday and particularly following Monday’s injury news, it sure seems like we’re in store for the latter when the Broncos and New England Patriots meet on Nov. 29.
The executive halls at NBC, the network televising the Week 12 matchup, must be an earmuff zone today.
What had looked like another must-see, nationally-broadcast Sunday night showdown between Manning and Tom Brady — a meeting that potentially pitted a pair of undefeated quarterbacks as recently as eight days ago — has suddenly turned into a relatively uninspiring tilt, albeit one that still has significant importance to the AFC playoff picture.
But the drama of the Patriots and Broncos both heading into the evening 10-0 is a forgotten scenario.
While Brady was leading the Patriots on a game-winning drive against the New York Giants on Sunday, Manning found himself benched in favor of Brock Osweiler, the fourth-year quarterback out of Arizona State who has had to do little more than meet the Papa John’s delivery driver at the front gate since Manning arrived in Denver. Manning suffered the worst — and perhaps final — performance of his Hall of Fame career in a 31-24 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs, completing only five of his 20 attempts to go with four interceptions (he also locked up the NFL record for most passing yards in a career) on the afternoon before head coach Gary Kubiak had seen enough.
Manning’s passer rating was perfect though: Zero-point-zero.
On Monday, the reality (or was it the excuse?) emerged from Broncos camp with ESPN’s Adam Scheffer reporting that Manning has a partially torn plantar fascia in his left foot. It’s believed that Manning aggravated the injury against the Indianapolis Colts last weekend in what just happened to be — surprise! — the Broncos’ first loss of the 2015 season.
Kubiak has already ruled out his starting quarterback on Sunday against the Chicago Bears Osweiler (14-of-24 passing with one touchdown and one interception on Sunday) will get the nod against Chicago, and from there the likelihood for his going against New England will only go as far as either the Broncos’ desperation to win a game or to placate Manning, whichever they deem more important by the end of the month.
The Broncos, at 7-2, still lead the AFC West, but have gone from battling the Patriots and Cincinnati Bengals (now, 8-1 after suffering their first loss of the season against the Houston Texans Monday night) for the top seed in the AFC, to possibly having to play wild card weekend. That could mean a date with the Pittsburgh Steelers, a team that would legitimately have a good shot of knocking off the Broncos at Mile High come January.
OK, so it’s not like two straight losses have relegated the Broncos to Titans status, but the best defense in the conference has also allowed 56 points to the 10th and 19th-ranked offenses in the NFL in terms of points per game over those two defeats. Denver also still has to deal with the AFC’s two top scoring offenses in the Patriots and Bengals with few weapons currently functioning in its own offensive artillery with which to counter.
Manning, despite the defenses of his perpetual pom-pom wavers, is having one of the worst seasons for a quarterback of his caliber. His rating of 67.6 is the worst in the NFL of anyone not named Ryan Mallett, and he isn’t even in the league anymore. Brady’s 111.1 is the best in the league.
In reality, Brady-Manning XVII might never have been much of a showdown anyway.
Oh, it’s not like Brady doesn’t have his own concerns to deal with, especially after losing his top wide receiver in Julian Edelman to a broken foot against the Giants. Edelman might be back in time for the playoffs, but until then, Brady’s ability to keep the offense in synch will be a point of emphasis. The quarterback wasn’t at his best in the first two quarters after Edelman went down, but sprinkled some fairy dust on the field at MetLife to mount a fourth-quarter comeback that relied on Edelman replacement Danny Amendola (and kicker Stephen Gostkowski) just as much as it did Brady.
But he and Manning are clearly moving in different directions at this stage of their careers.
Brady is a favorite for the NFL MVP, only months after fighting the league in its pursuit to have him sit out one-quarter of the season.
Manning? Well, he’s clearly done.
Which means we probably get Brady-Osweiler I in less than two weeks.
Swell.
Contact Eric Wilbur at: [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter: @GlobeEricWilbur
Photos from the Patriots’ dramatic win over the Giants
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