The 4-0 Denver Broncos are coming off a huge 52-20 victory over the not-so-terrible Philadelphia Eagles. This one-sided type of game is no oddity to Peyton Manning and this 2013 Broncos team though; Denver has outscored their opponents by a combined 88 points in the first four weeks of the season. The team currently leads the NFL in points scored, and it’s not even close. The Chicago Bears, second in the NFL in points for, trail the Broncos by an unbelievable 52 points. It seems like no one can even dare to match the Broncos right now; their offense essentially scores points at will, and so far even legitimate NFL teams have been thoroughly embarrassed when matched against Peyton Manning’s high-powered passing attack.
And this Broncos passing attack is undoubtedly high-powered. Manning currently leads the NFL in passing yards and passing touchdowns, and also has the highest quarterback rating. This is looking like a career year for Peyton, which is unbelievable considering the increasing pile of what should be limiting factors to his game.
The four-time league MVP has only one full season under his belt since missing an entire season due to a neck injury that rendered his throwing motion considerably weakened. The injury shouldn’t even have been the most severe of the should-be-concerns about Manning’s play entering this season though. The average age of a staring NFL quarterback is currently 28, and at 37 years old, Peyton is the oldest starting quarterback in the NFL. This is the point, even in great player’s careers, when play begins to decline and retirement inevitably approaches (John Elway, Dan Marino, and Joe Montana all retired at either age 38 or 39), although Manning’s current performance would suggest the exact opposite. By week 4 of this miraculous season, we already have seen that neither age nor inhibited arm strength can hold #18 back.
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