Banks on Manning

Tip to Oehser. Don Banks talks about Manning

Except when it happens in the closing and defining moments of a Super Bowl, of course. That’s when all nuance is lost, and nothing sticks but the broad stroke perceptions of winner, loser, hero, goat. Porter, Manning. Champion, underachiever. If the label fits, apply it.

“I had one coach this week tell me [Manning’s] greatness was emphasized to him this year more than ever, because the Colts running game was so bad,” Dilfer said. “Because of the lack of physicality of their run game, because he had two young receivers (Pierre Garcon and Austin Collie) to work with in the lineup, and because Dallas Clark can’t block anybody. And even with all that he took a 14-2 team to the Super Bowl and had his team driving to tie the score in the final minutes.

“I think Peyton Manning has the greatest burden on his shoulders of anyone who has ever played in the NFL, at any position. He has to do more for his team than any player I’ve ever watched, studied and or heard of. He took a 6-10 team and took it to the Super Bowl. The Colts are completely dependent on Peyton Manning’s greatness. Every game. Not just in the Super Bowl, but in every game. I refuse to say anyone’s the greatest of all time, but I have said I think he played the quarterback position better this year than anyone ever played it. And I feel even stronger about that now than I did before the Super Bowl.”

Dilfer doesn’t lack for definitive feelings, but it’s the middle ground here that feels right to me. I’m not interested in excusing Manning’s mistake at the most critical point in the Super Bowl. He made it, it’s part of his record, and he and the Colts have got to live with the painful consequences.

But I’m not interested in excoriating Manning either, or letting one pass serve as a referendum on his legacy. His interception was horribly timed, but it was far from a horrible throw. After being so good for so long this season, perfection proved to be beyond reach for Manning and the Colts. Favored or not, even icons don’t always get results.