Back in 2010, Peyton Manning was already a legend in Indianapolis. He had a Super Bowl ring and several records to his name. However, one neck injury flipped everything for him. After he missed the entire 2011 season, the Indianapolis Colts released him, ending a 13-year run that once felt untouchable. During that injury, belief in Peyton’s future faded so much that even his brother, Eli Manning, silently prepared for the worst.

“After that injury, he sat out a whole year,” Eli Manning said on Pardon My Take in October, looking back at the time he thought his brother’s football career was done. I remember back in New Orleans, it was Mardi Gras, and he was like, ‘Hey! Come out and throw with me. I just wanted to see something.’ And he was throwing.

“I was like, ‘There is zero chance you can play football.’ You can’t throw it. You can’t rip down on it. 13-year-old kids can throw it harder than what you are throwing right now.”

However, the injury story started way earlier. Peyton first hurt his neck in a game against Washington back in 2006. That time, nobody panicked, and everyone assumed it was manageable. But years later, the pain came back after a hit against Houston in 2010. Though he played the entire season with that injury, his arm strength simply was not the same.

His production had also dropped, but the quarterback still managed to throw for over 4,700 yards during that stretch.

That said, he hated how weak his throws looked and how people around him were reacting like his career was already over. So, he only trusted a tiny circle. His wife, brother Eli, and his dad. And like others, Eli was also stressed that Peyton’s career might have derailed.

“I was like, ‘This is scary,’ and for him, to grind it out, work, and do the treatments, and kind of learn how to play this new game where he couldn’t throw it as far, and then go to Denver and set the NFL record for TDs and throwings. That’s the most amazing thing I have ever seen,” Eli added. “He goes in and gets MVP.”

Peyton Manning’s comeback was loud. He joined the Broncos in 2012 and won the AP Comeback Player of the Year Award. In 2013, he was the MVP, and all that set him up for another Super Bowl win, eventually.

Once in Denver, things clicked fast. In just four years, Peyton delivered three of his most dominant seasons. During those first three Broncos campaigns, he threw for 14,863 yards, 131 touchdowns, and 36 interceptions. His passer ratings? 105.8, 115.1, and 101.5.

However, during his fourth year in Denver, not everything was smooth. Another injury hit at the worst possible time. In 2015, during Denver’s Super Bowl-winning season, Manning battled a painful foot injury that kept him out for six games. The offense struggled without him, and the final weeks were messy. Yet, he refused to make excuses.

“I wanted to go. I wanted to be out there for the team,” Manning said then. He returned for the last regular-season game against the Chargers and then helped his team to the playoffs and the Super Bowl.

Peyton’s resilience is legendary for a reason. Very few quarterbacks in NFL history have matched it.

Joe Montana missed all of 1991 due to an elbow injury but returned for three more seasons. Even during his time, doctors thought Montana’s career was over after back surgery in 1986. But he came back to win two more Super Bowls for the San Francisco 49ers. Manning’s streak fits right alongside that kind of perseverance.

Interestingly, once Peyton reflected on his journey. According to The New York Times, he said, “I’m proud to have been a part of two great organizations and two championship teams.”

That Super Bowl win in Denver wasn’t just a trophy; it cemented his legacy.

Peyton Manning grabbed his second chance with the Denver Broncos

When the Colts moved past their legendary quarterback, the move made sense for both parties, especially for the franchise. Peyton was already 35 when he missed the entire season in 2011. And considering his history with serious injuries, Indianapolis placed its bets on a rookie, Andrew Luck, who was drafted as the first overall pick.

Peyton was beginning to accept his fate at that point.

“If that was going to be the end of it because of a neck injury. I really believe it or not, had a peace about it,” the then-Broncos quarterback admitted in 2014.

Fortunately for Manning, several teams were still ready to bet on him. Even luckier, he made the right choice by signing with the Denver Broncos. The Bronco Nation quickly embraced him, and that move turned out to be the perfect platform for a legendary second act.

Before hanging up his cleats, Manning put up staggering numbers: 71,940 yards, 539 touchdowns, and 14 Pro Bowl selections in his entire career. He also earned 5 MVP awards, 2 Offensive Player of the Year awards, 1 Comeback Player of the Year, the Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year, a Super Bowl MVP, and two championships. He was enshrined in the Hall of Fame in 2021.

Today, Peyton Manning stands among the greatest quarterbacks in NFL history, a player whose second chance became an unforgettable legacy.