New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick was interviewed and heaped showers of praise on Denver Broncos veteran quarterback Peyton Manning. He made it clear that he will not underestimate Manning heading into the AFC Championship game.
Belichick should know better than anyone else that Manning is one of the smartest quarterbacks in the game and even with his arm not being the same as it once was will still be a threat.
"Peyton's a great player," Belichick said. "We've had tremendous battles with him through the years. There's no player off our team I have more respect for than Peyton Manning. His preparation, his consistency, his skills, I would never, ever, ever underestimate him under any circumstances."
Manning certainly didn't look like a quarterback that could lead the Broncos to the AFC Championship game earlier this season. He went down with an injury and Brock Osweiler took over. If it hadn't been for some struggles from Osweiler in Week 17, there is a good chance that Manning wouldn't have started for the Broncos again.
Throughout the course of the 2015 NFL season, Manning ended up playing in just 10 games. He completed 59.8 percent of his passes for 2,249 yards, nine touchdowns and 17 interceptions. As you can see from the numbers, it appeared obvious that age had caught up to him and that his career was close to ending.
At 39 years old, this could very well be the final chance that Manning has to win another Super Bowl.
New England and Denver should put on a very entertaining game and it should come down to the wire. Manning vs. Brady is a matchup that this era of football fans will never forget and seeing it happen one more time is the right way to send Manning off into the sunset.
