Peyton Manning Details What Advice he's Given Russell Wilson, Broncos on QB's Transition
After 14 seasons with the Indianapolis Colts, Peyton Manning suddenly became a Denver Bronco in the spring of 2012. The ensuing four-year stretch under Manning was a whirlwind of winning, punctuated by a victory in Super Bowl 50.
If Manning could go back and do it again, though, odds are, being the meticulous planner and tactician that he is, he'd do a few things differently. Russell Wilson finds himself in a similar situation as he transitions from 10 years with the Seattle Seahawks to being a Bronco, and that education Manning got circa 2012-13 could actually benefit him.
In an illuminating conversation with Ryan O'Halloran of The Denver Post, Manning detailed how involved he's been in easing Wilson's transition to the Mile High City and also the hand he's played in educating first-year head coach Nathaniel Hackett on the best way to help his new quarterback hit the ground running.
“I’ve talked to Russell a number of times, and we’ve had conversations about some of the things that helped me in my transition to a different team that I think can apply to anybody making the jump, especially after being in a place for a long time,” Manning The Denver Post in a phone interview last week as he promoted his Sweetens Cove bourbon brand. “(I’ve had) conversations Coach (Nathaniel) Hackett as well about some of those things, maybe some do’s and don’ts that helped me and can certainly apply and Russell can hit the ground running here in his first year.”
Indeed, success leaves clues. Few quarterbacks have been as successful at the NFL level than Manning.
When he retired, Manning was the NFL's all-time leading passer and owned multiple career and single-season records. He remains the league's only five-time MVP and was a 14-time Pro Bowler while being named first-team All-Pro a whopping seven times.
However, one of Manning's most impressive NFL feats was becoming the first quarterback to start and win a Super Bowl with two different clubs. Tom Brady has since matched him after leading the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to a Super Bowl victory two years ago.
Wilson hopes to become QB No. 3 to earn that distinction. Wilson will soon become the first QB to start for a team he defeated in a Super Bowl (XLVIII). As smart and talented as Wilson is, there's a fair chance he can accomplish the feat.
The difference between wisdom, and intelligence, though, is experience. If Manning's football wisdom, bought dearly through the crucible of a prolific 18-year NFL career, can help ease Wilson's transition and also point the Broncos' coaching staff in the right direction, it'll be a massive boon.
Manning has maintained a strong bond and connection with the Broncos since retiring in the spring of 2016. His primary residence remains in the greater Denver area, and he's availed himself to the Broncos, especially as it relates to the quarterback (carousel) position since his retirement, time and time again.
If Manning has it his way, he'll become a part-owner of the Broncos — if his prospective ownership group prevails in the coming auction of the franchise. Even if he had zero expectation of one day owning the Broncos, something tells me that it wouldn't have changed how helpful he's been to the club since he hung up his cleats six long years ago.
Wilson himself detailed the advice Manning gave him when before the trade between the Seahawks and Broncos was agreed to in principle and how it helped the nine-time Pro Bowler catch the vision of what Denver is like and what it truly means to be this team's quarterback.
“In terms of Peyton, I’ve known Peyton over the years," Wilson said during his introductory presser back on March 16. "Once this thing was kind of very real, I called him just to kind of figure out what he thought about the city. ‘Hey, what do you think about the schools?’
"If this does happen for me, and it did really quickly, I wanted to make sure that, ‘Hey, what went well? What didn’t go so well? What did you learn? What did you learn about yourself as a player? I think Peyton is one of the best minds in the game and one of the best throwers in the game. From going through that experience of being in Indy [Indianapolis] a place that he was at for almost 16-plus years, or whatever it was, to come here. It’s a big decision."
Follow Chad on Twitter @ChadNJensen.
Follow Mile High Huddle on Twitter and Facebook.
Subscribe to Mile High Huddle on YouTube for daily Broncos live-stream podcasts!
