Peyton Manning will announce his retirement today, leaving behind one of the all-time great careers. By ending with a Super Bowl win, he helps his status on any list of the Greatest NFL Quarterbacks of all time. That's despite coming off his worst-ever season.
Except for winning that Super Bowl -- and granted it's a mighty big exception -- Manning's final season was quite similar to that of a legend who retired after the 2010 season, Brett Favre.
Like Manning, Favre struggled, got injured, and missed several games during his final season, ultimately putting up the worst season of his career. Great career, but nobody thought he should keep playing after that lousy final campaign.
Both players' numbers in their final seasons were similar -- similarly awful. The table below shows those statistics, as well as where those seasons ranked for their career in those categories.
MANNING AND FAVRE, FINAL SEASONS | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Player | Manning | Favre | ||
Year | 2015 | Rank? | 2010 | Rank? |
Attempts | 331 | Worst | 358 | Worst |
Comp | 198 | Worst | 217 | Worst |
Comp % | 59.8 | 2nd-worst | 60.6 | 6th-worst |
Yards | 2249 | Worst | 2509 | Worst |
TDs | 9 | Worst | 11 | Worst |
INTs | 17 | 4th-worst | 19 | 6th-worst |
Rating | 67.9 | Worst | 69.9 | Worst |
--Andy Richardson