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| Peyton Manning |
An extremely marketable player outside of football, Peyton Manning has appeared in numerous commercials, was featured on the covers of the NFL Fever games for the Xbox, hosted an episode of Saturday Night Live, and guest-voiced on The Simpsons, along with his brothers, Eli and Cooper.
Peyton Manning's pre-snap routine has become one of the most recognizable scenes in the NFL. Prior to each play in a football game, the offensive team generally huddles; however, Peyton Manning and the Colts almost always skip the huddle, instead using a hurry-up offense with numerous audibles at the line of scrimmage. In 2010, he was named the eighth best player in NFL history, according to the NFL's top 100 show, and is the only active player in the top 10 category.
High school career
Peyton Manning attended Isidore Newman School in New Orleans, Louisiana. He led his team to a 34–5 record during three seasons as starter. He was named Gatorade Circle of Champions National Player-of-the-Year and Columbus (Ohio) Touchdown Club National Offensive Player-of-the-Year in 1993.
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| Peyton Manning |
Peyton Manning stunned many when he chose to attend the University of Tennessee instead of Ole Miss, his father's alma mater. He became Tennessee's all-time leading passer with 11,201 yards and 89 touchdowns and won 39 of 45 games as a starter, breaking the Southeastern Conference (SEC) record for career wins.
As a freshman, Peyton Manning was the third-string quarterback, but injuries to Todd Helton and Jerry Colquitt forced him to take over the Mississippi State game, a 24–21 loss. In his first start, the following week against Washington State, the Vols won, 10–9, and the Vols won all but one of their remaining games, finishing the season 8–4 with a 45–23 victory over Virginia Tech in the Gator Bowl.
Peyton Manning and the Vols started off the 1995 season with victories over East Carolina and Georgia, before heading off to Gainesville to play the Gators. Against Florida, he threw for 326 yards and 2 touchdowns, leading the Vols to a 30–21 halftime lead. However, the Gators outscored the Vols 41–7 in the second half, winning 62–37. This would be the Vols' only loss of the season, as they won their remaining 8 regular season games, including a 41–14 win over Alabama and then defeated Ohio State in the Citrus Bowl. The Vols ended the season ranked third and Peyton Manning came in sixth in Heisman Trophy voting.
The Vols opened the 1996 season ranked second behind Nebraska and one of the favorites to win the national championship. However, after winning their first two games against UNLV and UCLA, the Vols again lost to Florida, 35–29, with Peyton Manning throwing four interceptions. After winning their next four games, the Vols were upset by Memphis, despite Peyton Manning passing for 296 yards. The Vols won the remainder of their games, including a 48–28 win in the Citrus Bowl over Northwestern, a game in which Manning passed for 408 yards and 4 touchdowns; he was named the game's MVP.
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| Peyton Manning |
Professional recent career
The Colts placed their franchise tag on Peyton Manning on February 15, 2011. On July 30, 2011, the Colts signed Manning to a 5 year, $90 million contract after negotiations in which he made it clear that he did not need to be the highest-paid player in the NFL.
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| Peyton Manning |
Peyton Manning stated that while he did intend to play during the 2011 season, he would not "fight" the front office to stay off injured reserve if his roster spot was needed. Manning started practicing throwing footballs again in mid-December, with teammate Joseph Addai even claiming his passes looked "game ready." Ultimately, Manning did not play a single game in 2011, and the Colts went 2-14 without him, only the second season since Manning was a rookie that the Colts did not win at least 10 games.
