Age: 27
6th season in pro
football & with Colts
College: Tennessee
Height: 6’5” Weight: 230
Prelude:
Son of NFL quarterback
Archie Manning and a star in college, Manning was chosen by the Colts with the
first overall draft pick in 1998. It didn’t take long for him to justify the selection
as he set NFL rookie records with 3739 passing yards and 26 TD passes. He led
the league with 575 pass attempts, also a record for a rookie at the time, but
also with 28 interceptions on a 3-13 club. The record turned around to 13-3 in
’99, the Colts qualified for the postseason, and Manning was selected to the
Pro Bowl for the first time as he passed for 4135 yards and, while he again
threw 26 TD passes, his interceptions dropped to 15. A classic drop-back
passer, he lacked his father’s mobility but made up for it with a quick release
– not to mention an excellent work ethic. Manning led the NFL with 357
completions, 4413 yards, and 33 TD passes in 2000 and again was chosen for the
Pro Bowl. Following a lesser year in ’01 as the Colts dropped to 6-10, he
bounced back with a third Pro Bowl season in 2002, passing for 4200 yards (his
fourth straight year over 4000) and 27 touchdowns. The team was back in the
playoffs, but for the third straight time Manning and the Colts came up short
in their initial postseason game.
2003 Season Summary
Appeared and started in all 16
games
[Bracketed numbers indicate
league rank in Top 20]
Passing
Attempts – 566 [2]
Most attempts, game – 48
vs. New England 11/30
Completions – 379 [1]
Most completions, game –
34 at Tampa Bay
Yards – 4267 [1]
Most passing yards, game – 401
vs. NY Jets 11/16
Completion percentage – 67.0 [1]
Yards per attempt – 7.5 [4]
TD passes – 29 [2, 1st in AFC]
Most TD passes, game – 6 at New Orleans
Interceptions – 10
Most interceptions, game – 2
at Cleveland 9/7, at Jacksonville
Passer rating – 99.0 [2]
400-yard passing games – 1
300-yard passing games – 4
200-yard passing games – 14
Rushing
Attempts – 28
Most attempts, game - 5 (for
17 yds.) at Tennessee
Yards – 26
Most yards, game – 17 yards
(on 5 carries) at Tennessee
Yards per attempt – 0.9
TDs – 0
Pass Receiving
Receptions – 1
Yards – -2
Yards per catch – -2.0
TDs - 0
Postseason: 3 G
Pass attempts – 103
Most attempts, game - 47 at New England , AFC Championship
Pass completions – 67
Most completions, game - 23 at
New England , AFC Championship
Passing yardage – 918
Most yards, game - 377 vs. Denver
TD passes – 9
Most TD passes, game - 5 vs.
Denver
Interceptions – 4
Most interceptions, game - 4
at New England , AFC Championship
Rushing attempts – 4
Most rushing attempts, game
- 2 at New England , AFC Championship
Rushing yards – 3
Most rushing yards, game - 4
at New England , AFC Championship
Average gain rushing – 0.8
Rushing TDs – 0
Awards & Honors:
NFL MVP: AP, NEA, Bert Bell
Award, Sporting News
1st team All-NFL:
AP, PFWA, Sporting News
1st team All-AFC:
Pro Football Weekly
Pro Bowl
Colts went 12-4 to win the
AFC South and gain the third playoff seed in the conference while leading the
NFL in passing yards (4179) and placing second in scoring (447 points, tied
with the Rams). Won Wild Card playoff over Denver Broncos (41-10) and Divisional
playoff over Kansas City Chiefs (38-31). Lost AFC Championship to New England Patriots (24-14).
Aftermath:
Manning again received MVP
consideration and was a consensus first-team All-Pro in 2004 as he set a record
with 49 TD passes while leading the league in passing (121.1 rating) for the
first of three straight years and also topped the NFL in TD percentage (9.9)
and yards per attempt (9.2). He was consensus first-team All-Pro for the third
consecutive year in 2005 and, in ’06, finally overcame years of frustration in
the playoffs as the Colts won the Super Bowl. Manning led the NFL in TD passes
with 31 that year, against just 9 interceptions. Overall, he started 208 straight regular
season games at quarterback until sidelined for all of 2011
with a neck injury. He also received MVP honors on four occasions, was a
consensus first-team All-Pro five times, and was selected to 11 Pro Bowls. He
has passed for 54,828 yards, with 11 seasons over 4000 (including the last five
straight through 2010), and 399 TD passes. Released by the Colts and signed by
the Denver Broncos for 2012, his place among the great quarterbacks of all-time
is secure.
--
MVP Profiles feature players who were named MVP or Player of the Year in the NFL,
AAFC (1946-49), AFL (1960-69), WFL (1974), or USFL (1983-85) by a recognized
organization (Associated Press, Pro Football Writers Association, Newspaper
Enterprise Association, United Press International, The Sporting News, Maxwell
Club – Bert Bell Award, or the league itself).
[Updated 2/9/14]
[Updated 2/9/14]
[Updated 11/28/14]
