Bill Polian's article about Denver Broncos and Peyton Manning

[chad72]

http://insider.espn.go.com/nfl/story?id=7765059&_slug_=former-indianapolis-colts-boss-bill-polian-explains-how-denver-broncos-transition-tim-tebow-peyton-manning&action=login&appRedirect=http%3a%2f%2finsider.espn.go.com%2fnfl%2fstory%3fid%3d7765059%26_slug_%3dformer-indianapolis-colts-boss-bill-polian-explains-how-denver-broncos-transition-tim-tebow-peyton-manning

Since people do not have ESPN insider access, I am posting this from the article contents below:

IN HIS 13 SEASONS as the Colts quarterback, Peyton Manning went to 11 Pro Bowls. After each one, he'd come back to Indianapolis with a voluminous file of handwritten notes from his week in Hawaii. He'd ask other quarterbacks about their offenses, ask coaches how they handled certain team situations and ask defensive players about adjustments they made throughout the season. Then he'd bring everything to our staff and say, "Here are some ideas we should be considering." That right there shows you why Peyton is an all-time great and why we made the playoffs nine straight years with him under center.

Now he's starting over in Denver, and there's naturally going to be an adjustment process -- mostly for his new teammates. Peyton redefines the word "preparation," which means he's going to push his fellow offensive players to match his effort. In Indianapolis, he'd spend entire practice periods with Marvin Harrison or Reggie Wayne fine-tuning one part of a single pass play. In Denver, the biggest issue I see with Peyton is that the coaches -- especially John Fox and offensive coordinator Mike McCoy -- will have to get him to dial it back a bit. He's 36 now and coming off a major injury. He has to lighten the load, and the only way that will happen is if the staff insists on it.

But believe me, there will be no friction between him and the Broncos coaching staff. Peyton is not an offensive coordinator, nor does he want to be one. That's a pure misconception. He'll give his input on McCoy's playbook, and he'll certainly have the ability to call multiple plays in the huddle and audible at the line. But Peyton always worked within a system in Indianapolis, and he'll do the same in Denver.

That's not to say the Broncos offense won't revolve around Peyton, because it will. More than anything else, it will be fascinating to watch the offensive line get acclimated to having Peyton under center after a year in essentially an option offense led by Tim Tebow. The talent is certainly there: Denver's line is outstanding, with a pair of young tackles, Ryan Clady and Orlando Franklin, who are very good. They'll need a refresher course on pass protection and complex audibles, but it helps that Peyton might be the best quarterback ever at getting rid of the ball. As a Colt, he was sacked once every 31 pass attempts; last season, Tebow went down every nine drop-backs.

At least in the early going this season, expect Peyton to throw to his tight ends a lot; Denver picked up ex-Colts tight end Jacob Tamme and Texans free agent tight end Joel Dreessen, which will allow him to do that. As talented as Broncos receivers Demaryius Thomas and Eric Decker are, they simply won't have the same connection with Peyton that he had with Marvin and Reggie.

That was honed over years of repetition. So while Peyton develops a rhythm with his wideouts, don't be surprised if Tamme has a season like he had in 2010, when he caught a career-high 67 passes for 631 yards.

The Broncos defense is excellent at rushing the passer, and kicker Matt Prater is darn near automatic from the 35-yard line in. So Peyton has to know that he needs to get only to the 35 to score points, and if a drive stalls there, he doesn't have to go for broke. With Von Miller and Elvis Dumervil getting after the opposing quarterback, the Broncos offense can take the three points and play with a lead.

To dispel another misconception about Peyton, he actually likes to rely on the running game. Our most successful offensive play in Indianapolis was a play-action pass off a stretch play, which worked only when we were picking up yards on the ground from the actual stretch play. In Denver, the biggest adjustment will be with the running backs: Willis McGahee and Knowshon Moreno will get plenty of carries, but they'll also have to block and pick up blitzes more than they did last season.

Overall, I'd expect Denver's offense to be a work in progress as everyone adjusts to a new quarterback and a new system. But I'd bet that the offense will take off in the second half of the season, making the Broncos legitimate championship contenders.

And I'd also bet that in February, right after the Pro Bowl, Peyton will have a brand-new folder full of notes to share with his Broncos bosses.

[CR91]

why in the world would coaches and players give peyton more information he can use to beat them?

[Peyton and Eli fan]

Peyton joined the Giants at a Yankees game a couple of years ago and was asking guys a bunch of questions. Eli had to tell them to shut up and not give him info. "He's not really that interested in you"

[21isSuperman]

You want Peyton to slow down in his preparation? That's like telling a dog not to bark.

And one reason for Peyton's low sack numbers is his quick release, not necessarily great line play

[Coltssouth]

Good article, I enjoyed reading it. Thanks for the post.

[Fx Stryker]

That was a great article. I cannot believe people told him there plays. The Eli and Giant story is great too.

I just hope the Broncos are not really considering the whole "play with the lead" attitude though. Next season is going to be wild.

[southwest1]

Peyton is the zen master & brilliant dissector of NFL defenses that's why I affectionately refer to him as "Yoda." Just once, I wish NFL Films would ask top safeties, LB's, DE's, & conerbacks who the best QB's are in this decade & why.

QB's never square off against each other but they play minds games with Ed Reed, Champ Bailey, Troy Polamalu, Patrick Willis, T-Sizzle, Justin Tuck, & Ray Lewis etc. etc.

#18 will love have a reliable running game & 2 stout pass rushers on defense who can reek havoc just like Mathis & Freeney locked down leads for him in INDY. Peyton will dial nothing back; By mid July, his arm strength will be back.

The real question is how quickly his new tight ends & receivers get on the same page with exactly where Peyton wants them & how well the pick up blitzes & block for him as the article suggests. With Peyton, team success begins ends with the offense line.

[ReMeDy]

I've heard Peyton does this at Pro-Bowls a lot - he will pick at everyone's brains. There was a video on NFL.com once when he was questioning Wes Welker what routes he was comfortable with, but Welker sniffed it out and remained hush-hush about it, lol.

Peyton will stroll over to you like he wants to be your best buddy, makes small talk to open up the conversation, then immediately picks your brain.

[Susie Q]

Thanks for posting the article I enjoyed reading it. :thmsup:

[Jay305]

The G.O.A.T

[oldunclemark]

why in the world would coaches and players give peyton more information he can use to beat them?

Not that bright

[Mouthfire]

Great article.

[oldunclemark]

http://insider.espn....-peyton-manning

Since people do not have ESPN insider access, I am posting this from the article contents below:

IN HIS 13 SEASONS as the Colts quarterback, Peyton Manning went to 11 Pro Bowls. After each one, he'd come back to Indianapolis with a voluminous file of handwritten notes from his week in Hawaii. He'd ask other quarterbacks about their offenses, ask coaches how they handled certain team situations and ask defensive players about adjustments they made throughout the season. Then he'd bring everything to our staff and say, "Here are some ideas we should be considering." That right there shows you why Peyton is an all-time great and why we made the playoffs nine straight years with him under center.

Now he's starting over in Denver, and there's naturally going to be an adjustment process -- mostly for his new teammates. Peyton redefines the word "preparation," which means he's going to push his fellow offensive players to match his effort. In Indianapolis, he'd spend entire practice periods with Marvin Harrison or Reggie Wayne fine-tuning one part of a single pass play. In Denver, the biggest issue I see with Peyton is that the coaches -- especially John Fox and offensive coordinator Mike McCoy -- will have to get him to dial it back a bit. He's 36 now and coming off a major injury. He has to lighten the load, and the only way that will happen is if the staff insists on it.

But believe me, there will be no friction between him and the Broncos coaching staff. Peyton is not an offensive coordinator, nor does he want to be one. That's a pure misconception. He'll give his input on McCoy's playbook, and he'll certainly have the ability to call multiple plays in the huddle and audible at the line. But Peyton always worked within a system in Indianapolis, and he'll do the same in Denver.

That's not to say the Broncos offense won't revolve around Peyton, because it will. More than anything else, it will be fascinating to watch the offensive line get acclimated to having Peyton under center after a year in essentially an option offense led by Tim Tebow. The talent is certainly there: Denver's line is outstanding, with a pair of young tackles, Ryan Clady and Orlando Franklin, who are very good. They'll need a refresher course on pass protection and complex audibles, but it helps that Peyton might be the best quarterback ever at getting rid of the ball. As a Colt, he was sacked once every 31 pass attempts; last season, Tebow went down every nine drop-backs.

At least in the early going this season, expect Peyton to throw to his tight ends a lot; Denver picked up ex-Colts tight end Jacob Tamme and Texans free agent tight end Joel Dreessen, which will allow him to do that. As talented as Broncos receivers Demaryius Thomas and Eric Decker are, they simply won't have the same connection with Peyton that he had with Marvin and Reggie.

That was honed over years of repetition. So while Peyton develops a rhythm with his wideouts, don't be surprised if Tamme has a season like he had in 2010, when he caught a career-high 67 passes for 631 yards.

The Broncos defense is excellent at rushing the passer, and kicker Matt Prater is darn near automatic from the 35-yard line in. So Peyton has to know that he needs to get only to the 35 to score points, and if a drive stalls there, he doesn't have to go for broke. With Von Miller and Elvis Dumervil getting after the opposing quarterback, the Broncos offense can take the three points and play with a lead.

To dispel another misconception about Peyton, he actually likes to rely on the running game. Our most successful offensive play in Indianapolis was a play-action pass off a stretch play, which worked only when we were picking up yards on the ground from the actual stretch play. In Denver, the biggest adjustment will be with the running backs: Willis McGahee and Knowshon Moreno will get plenty of carries, but they'll also have to block and pick up blitzes more than they did last season.

Overall, I'd expect Denver's offense to be a work in progress as everyone adjusts to a new quarterback and a new system. But I'd bet that the offense will take off in the second half of the season, making the Broncos legitimate championship contenders.

And I'd also bet that in February, right after the Pro Bowl, Peyton will have a brand-new folder full of notes to share with his Broncos bosses.

That's good stuff..chad....

Polian says a couple of things I've never heard...and I think they're debatable..

Peyton may like the runing game but he's also said many times he'd pass 2 out of every 3 downs if they'd let him.

Remember his funny arguement with Saturday over running the ball near the goal line>>??

This is a guy who set the NFL record for pass attempts in 2010 with a bad neck.

In the light air in Denver..that fast break offense is going to wear folks out

[Gavin]

Two problems I have with that article

1. that article actually expects me to believe other teams, coaches and players shared valuable information about what the teams run and how they play? even if its the offseason

2. Peyton was the offensive Coordinator in Indy that was evident, and he actually liked to run the ball? no quarterback likes to run the ball,

other then that good article just seemed a little odd to me those statements, seems like opinions mixed in with some facts to me

[Peyton and Eli fan]

The way Eli described it, it was more of a sneek attack to get info from other players - charm them into giving out info.